From: eric@flesch.org (Eric Flesch)
Newsgroups: sci.astro
Subject: FREE LUNCH Catalogue of 120,000 QSO Candidates now Available
Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2000 08:41:22 GMT
Organization: Asia Online NZ
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Presenting the FREE LUNCH catalogue of 775,249 radio/xray associations
with optical objects.  In this catalogue each optical candidate comes
equipped with a listed percentile probability (range 40%-100%) that
the object is a quasar.  The calculational method is explained in the
ReadMe file which accompanies the catalogue.

There are four files, these being:
(1) 120,017 QSO candidates, which will yield about 100,000 actual QSOs
when (one day) all the spectra are taken.
(2) 337,199 galaxy candidates, that is, candidates of being a
radio/xray source galaxy.
(3) 235,355 mongrel radio/xray-emitting optical objects.  Heck, I
don't know what they are but I've listed the probabilities.
(4) 82,678 already-catalogued QSOs, galaxies & stars, with the optical
data (magnitudes etc) and calculated probabilities of radio/xray
association which can be used as a control group for the candidates.

Pick up the catalogue at ftp://quasars.org/quasars/Free-Lunch .  Yes,
you lucky bastards, there is a FREE LUNCH after all! 

Following is the first few paragraphs from the ReadMe files. 

Enjoy,
Eric Flesch
Wellington, New Zealand
12 November 2000
_________________________________

The FREE LUNCH Catalogue, similar to its more pedestrian cousin the
Overlays 2000 Conglomerate Catalogue (O2C), aligns and overlays the
year 2000 releases of the ROSAT HRI, RASS, PSPC and WGA x-ray
catalogues, the NVSS and FIRST radio catalogues, the Veron QSO
catalogue, the Principal Galaxy Catalogue, and the Tycho star
catalogue onto the optical APM and USNO catalogues.  The FREE LUNCH
catalogue however displays calculated percentage probabilities for
each object of its likelihood of being a quasar, galaxy, star, or
erroneous radio/xray association.  More objects are presented here
than in the O2C, and the list of viable radio/xray QSO candidates is
Y2000 complete.  

This catalogue is comprised of four files showing radio/xray
associations, one for QSO candidates, one for QSOs/galaxies/stars from
other catalogues, one for galaxy candidates, and a mixed file of stars
and objects of unclear pedigree. 
  
Objects presented in this catalogue are those optical APM/USNO objects
which are associated with x-ray/radio detections, or any
optically-found catalogued QSO/AGN/Bl Lac objects, within a confidence
of 40%-100%, but can be lower for some QSO candidates.  There are
775,249 objects included in all, representing 99.5% coverage of the
sky available from the APM and USNO.  

Each object is shown as one line bearing the position in equatorial
coordinates, red and blue optical magnitudes (recalibrated) and PSF
class, calculated probabilities of the object being, separately, a
quasar, galaxy, star, or erroneous radio/xray association, a radio
identification and x-ray identification where applicable, including
fluxes of those identifications, plus, if already catalogued, the
object name and redshift where applicable.