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| STELIB | |
|---|---|
| Name | STELIB |
| Title | STELIB |
| Developer | Institut d'Astronomie de Paris |
| Released | 2003 |
| Latest release version | 3.0 |
| Operating system | Cross-platform |
| Genre | Stellar spectral library |
| License | Open access (institutional) |
STELIB is an empirical stellar spectral library assembled for population synthesis and spectral analysis of galaxies and stellar systems. It provides medium-resolution spectra for a wide range of spectral types and luminosity classes suitable for comparison with observations from instruments on facilities such as Very Large Telescope, Keck Observatory, and Hubble Space Telescope. The library bridges datasets used by research groups at institutions including European Southern Observatory, Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, and Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.
The library was motivated by needs articulated in studies by teams at Sloan Digital Sky Survey, Two Micron All-Sky Survey, and projects linked to COBE and Spitzer Space Telescope. Early contributors included researchers affiliated with Institut d'Astronomie de Paris, Université Paris-Sud, Observatoire de Paris, and collaborators from University of Cambridge and California Institute of Technology. STELIB complements other empirical and theoretical compilations such as those from Pickles (1998), MILES, ELODIE, Indo-US Library, and synthetic grids produced by groups at Kurucz and MARCS.
Design choices were influenced by observational programs at observatories like European Southern Observatory, Calar Alto Observatory, and La Silla Observatory. Instrumental setups referenced include spectrographs on New Technology Telescope, Anglo-Australian Telescope, and William Herschel Telescope. The selection of target stars drew on catalogs maintained by Henry Draper Catalogue, Hipparcos, Gliese Catalogue of Nearby Stars, and cross-identifications with surveys from Two Micron All-Sky Survey and Tycho-2. Project management involved collaboration among teams from CNRS, CEA Saclay, University of Oxford, University of Edinburgh, and National Optical Astronomy Observatory.
Spectra span optical wavelengths comparable to ranges used by instruments on Hubble Space Telescope instruments like Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph and ground units attached to Very Large Telescope. The spectral resolution targets were comparable to those used in studies by Sloan Digital Sky Survey and follow-up programs by Keck Observatory and Gemini Observatory. Coverage of spectral types includes standards established in catalogs by Morgan–Keenan system contributors and spectral templates used in extragalactic work published by teams at Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics, Carnegie Institution for Science, and Princeton University.
Reduction procedures adopted pipelines similar to those documented by European Southern Observatory and techniques developed at National Radio Astronomy Observatory adapted to optical data, including bias subtraction, flat-fielding, wavelength calibration against arc lamps used at Calar Alto Observatory and flux calibration using spectrophotometric standards from lists by Oke (1990), Bohlin, and groups at STScI. Telluric correction procedures referenced methodologies from Mauna Kea Observatories instrumentation teams and cross-checked against standards maintained by NOAO. Quality assessment compared resultant spectra to benchmark observations from Keck Observatory archives and standard star compilations curated by Royal Observatory, Edinburgh.
STELIB has been used in stellar population synthesis models by researchers at Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris, University of Cambridge, University of California, Santa Cruz, and Yale University to interpret integrated light of systems observed with Hubble Space Telescope, Subaru Telescope, and Very Large Telescope. It has supported spectral fitting in extragalactic surveys like Sloan Digital Sky Survey, kinematic studies using instruments on Keck Observatory and Gemini Observatory, and chemical tagging comparisons informed by analyses at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and University of Chicago. The library has underpinned work on stellar atmospheres conducted by groups at University of Exeter, University of Bonn, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, and University of Tokyo. It also served as a reference for automated classification efforts in projects associated with European Space Agency missions and pipeline teams at Space Telescope Science Institute.
Critiques noted by investigators from Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Columbia University, and Princeton University emphasize incomplete coverage of metallicity and abundance patterns relative to theoretical grids from Kurucz and MARCS. Sparse sampling of certain luminosity classes was highlighted by analysts at Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and teams working with Sloan Digital Sky Survey data, and wavelength gaps compared to the continuous coverage targeted by MILES and ELODIE were pointed out in reviews by European Southern Observatory staff. Calibration consistency issues were discussed in conferences at International Astronomical Union meetings and workshops organized by American Astronomical Society and Royal Astronomical Society.
Data distribution follows policies similar to archival releases by European Southern Observatory and public archives at Centre de Données astronomiques de Strasbourg and VizieR. Researchers at University of Cambridge, California Institute of Technology, and Observatoire de Paris have accessed the files through institutional mirrors and via portals maintained in coordination with Space Telescope Science Institute and National Virtual Observatory initiatives. Usage in major surveys and by teams at Sloan Digital Sky Survey, European Space Agency, and NASA has led to broad citation in literature produced by groups at Max Planck Society, CNRS, Smithsonian Institution, and University of Arizona.
Category:Stellar spectral libraries