A large, complete, volume-limited sample of G-type dwarfs. I. Completion of Stroemgren UVBY photometry

Four-colour photometry of potential dwarf stars of types G0 to K2, selected from the Michigan Spectral Catalogues (Vol. 1-3), has been carried out. The results are presented in a catalogue containing 4247 uvby observations of 3900 stars, all south of δ = -26deg. The overall internal rms errors of one observation (transformed to the standard system) of a program star in the interval 8.5 < V < 10.5 are 0.0044, 0.0021, 0.0039, and 0.0059, respectively, in V, b-y, m_1_ , and c_1_. The purpose of the catalogue, combined with earlier catalogues, is to allow selection of a large, complete, volume-limited sample of G- and K-type dwarfs, investigate their metallicity distribution, and compare it to predictions of various models of galactic chemical evolution. Future papers in this series will discuss these subjects.