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Description
The final catalog of the 2dF QSO Redshift Survey (2QZ) is based on Anglo-Australian Telescope 2dF spectroscopic observations of 44,576 color-selected (u, b<sub>J</sub>, r) objects with 18.25 < b<sub>J</sub> < 20.85 selected from automated plate measurement scans of UK Schmidt Telescope (UKST) photographic plates. The 2QZ comprises 23,338 quasi-stellar objects (QSOs), 12,292 galactic stars (including 2,071 white dwarfs) and 4,558 compact narrow emission-line galaxies. The authors obtained a reliable spectroscopic identification for 86 per cent of objects observed with 2dF. They also report on the 6dF QSO Redshift Survey (6QZ), based on UKST 6dF observations of 1,564 brighter (16 < b<sub>J</sub> < 18.25) sources selected from the same photographic input catalog. In total, the authors identified 322 QSOs spectroscopically in the 6QZ. The completed 2QZ is, by more than a factor of 50, the largest homogeneous QSO catalog ever constructed at these faint limits (b<sub>J</sub> < 20.85) and high QSO surface densities (35 QSOs/deg<sup>2</sup>). As such, it represents an important resource in the study of the Universe at moderate-to-high redshifts. The survey area comprised 30 UKST fields, arranged in two 75 degrees by 5 degrees declination strips, one passing across the South Galactic Gap centered on Dec = -30 degrees (the SGP strip), and the other across the North Galactic Gap centered on Dec = 0 degrees (referred to in the reference paper as the equatorial strip, but also known as the NGP strip. The total survey area is 721.6 deg<sup>2</sup>, when allowance is made for regions of sky excised around bright stars. Spectroscopic observations of the input catalogue were made with the 2dF instrument at the Anglo-Australian Telescope (AAT; the 2QZ sample) and the 6dF instrument at the UKST (the 6QZ sample). 2dF spectroscopic observations began in January 1997 and were completed in April 2002. Six-degree Field observations were performed over the period 2001 March-2002 September. This online catalog was created by the HEASARC in October 2010 based on the machine-readable table 2qz.dat obtained from the CDS (their catalog VII/241). This is a service provided by NASA HEASARC .
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