SDWFS: Infrared Variability Catalog for the Boötes Field

A four-epoch infrared survey covering 10 square degrees in the Boötes field, conducted using the Spitzer Space Telescope's IRAC instrument. The SDWFS Variability Catalog, produced by NASA, provides variability information for sources detected at 3.6 microns, enabling the study of galaxy evolution beyond redshift 1.5. The catalog is described in Kozlowski et al. (2010).

Use Cases

• Identifying infrared-variable objects based on multi 3.6-micron epoch observations.
• Selecting high proper motion objects over a wide field using the four-epoch survey design.
• Characterizing galaxy evolution at redshifts beyond 1.5 based on the survey's large volume and sensitivity.
• Mitigating cosmic variance in galaxy studies, except for the richest systems, due to the survey's wide field.

Strengths

• Covers a wide 10-square-degree area in the Boötes field.
• Provides four epochs of observation, enabling variability and proper motion studies on timescales of years.
• Sensitive to galaxies out to redshift ~3 with reduced impact from cosmic variance.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Observational data from the IRAC instrument on the Spitzer Space Telescope, part of the Spitzer Cycle 4 Legacy project.

Time Range

Observations conducted over four epochs.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 18:08:08.773243; freshness should be verified

Geography

The Boötes field.