SPectroscopic IDentifcation of ERosita Sources (SPIDERS)
Overview
The main goal of the SPectroscopic IDentfication of ERosita Sources (SPIDERS) survey is to provide a complete and homogeneous optical spectroscopic followup of X-ray sources (both point-like and extended) detected by eROSITA in its first year of survey operation, to begin in Fall 2019. Before then, the SPIDERS Survey will follow-up of the currently existing wide area X-ray surveys. SPIDERS targets all the ROSAT All-Sky Survey (RASS) sources missing spectroscopic follow-up within the SDSS-IV/eBOSS footprint. It targets as well the hard X-ray AGN population detected in the XMM-Newton Slew Survey. A detailed description of the target selection and links to value-added catalogs are available in the SPIDERS target selection page.
SPIDERS clusters of galaxies were selected by cross-correlating faint ROSAT sources with red-galaxy excess found in SDSS imaging in the range 0.1<z<0.6. These are the most massive and largest clusters in the X-ray sky, and represent a well-defined sample that can be used as a first stepping stone for cluster cosmology experiments via measurement of the growth of structure. With ~4,500 X-ray cluster targets, it will be by far the largest homogeneously X-ray selected sample with full spectroscopic followup. Once eROSITA data become available, we will be able to target additional fainter, smaller mass and higher redshift clusters. The better angular resolution of eROSITA over ROSAT, and the better energy resolution, implies we will be able to better characterize the X-ray/optical selection and provide competitive cosmological measurements of cosmic growth.
eBOSS/SPIDERS obtained >30,000 spectra of ROSAT, XMM and eROSITA X-ray selected AGN, about 40% of which in common with eBOSS QSO program and the remaining unique SPIDERS AGN targets. This spectroscopic X-ray selected sample will be ~2.5 times larger than the total number of X-ray AGN with spectroscopic redshift currently known, and about a factor 10 larger than any existing coherent, contiguous, well-defined, X-ray survey.
During its early phases of operations, eROSITA was used to survey a contiguous region of ∼140deg2. This eROSITA Final Equatorial-Depth Survey (eFEDS; Brunner et al. 2021) is intended as an early representative demonstration of the capabilities of the eROSITA all-sky survey, which will not be completed until late 2023. In order to exploit the availability of these X-ray data, we allocated a dedicated set of 12 SDSS-IV/SPIDERS plates to follow up counterparts of eFEDS X-ray sources, to be observed at Apache Point Observatory during the first quarter of 2020. Because of the COVID19-related closure of APO, only 7 of the originally designed plates were observed, most to shallower than expected depth. These special eFEDS plates are released as part of SDSS DR17, and are described in more detail in the DR17 Data Release paper Abdurro’uf et al. (2022). Following the general SPIDERS science goals, both galaxy members of X-ray selected clusters of galaxies and AGN were targeted in these special plates (see SPIDERS target selection page for details).
SPIDERS Technical Details
- Dark-time observations together with eBOSS
- July 2014 – February 2019. Final area: 5,300 square degrees
- ~4,500 red sequence galaxies X-ray clusters
- ~30,000 X-ray detected AGN and stars
- Principal Investigators
- Kirpal Nandra, Andrea Merloni (MPE/ Garching bei Muenchen, Germany)
- AGN lead scientist
- Mara Salvato (MPE)
- Clusters lead scientist
- Nicolas Clerc (IRAP, France)
- Data scientist
- Johan Comparat (MPE)
Target selection
The target selection algorithms are described in this page and documented in Clerc et al. 2016 and Dwelly et al. 2017.
The target selection catalogues are available as value added catalogues.
Value added catalogs
Active galactic nuclei
Multi-wavelength properties of XMM-Slew Survey AGN
Multi-wavelength properties of RASS AGN
Optical Emission Line Properties and Black Hole Mass Estimates for SPIDERS DR16 AGN
Galaxy clusters
The SPIDERS-Clusters demonstration sample catalogue
The Brightest Cluster Galaxies properties of SPIDERS X-ray galaxy clusters
SPIDERS X-ray galaxy cluster catalogue for DR16
References
General papers
About AGN
SDSS-IV/SPIDERS Wolf et al. 2019.