Citation:
Date Published:
August 1, 2009Abstract:
The Spitzer Deep, Wide-Field Survey (SDWFS) is a four-epoch infraredsurvey of 10 deg2 in the Boötes field of the NOAO DeepWide-Field Survey using the IRAC instrument on the Spitzer SpaceTelescope. SDWFS, a Spitzer Cycle 4 Legacy project, occupies a uniqueposition in the area-depth survey space defined by other Spitzersurveys. The four epochs that make up SDWFS permit—for the firsttime—the selection of infrared-variable and high proper motionobjects over a wide field on timescales of years. Because of its largesurvey volume, SDWFS is sensitive to galaxies out to z ~ 3 withrelatively little impact from cosmic variance for all but the richestsystems. The SDWFS data sets will thus be especially useful forcharacterizing galaxy evolution beyond z ~ 1.5. This paper explains theSDWFS observing strategy and data processing, presents the SDWFS mosaicsand source catalogs, and discusses some early scientific findings. Thepublicly released, full-depth catalogs contain 6.78, 5.23, 1.20, and0.96 × 105 distinct sources detected to the average5σ, 4''-diameter, aperture-corrected limits of 19.77, 18.83,16.50, and 15.82 Vega mag at 3.6, 4.5, 5.8, and 8.0 μm, respectively.The SDWFS number counts and color-color distribution are consistent withother, earlier Spitzer surveys. At the 6 minute integration time of the