The WISE Blazar-like Radio-loud Sources: An All-sky Catalog of Candidate γ-ray Blazars
Abstract
We present a catalog of radio-loud candidate γ-ray emitting blazars with WISE mid-infrared colors similar to the colors of confirmed γ-ray blazars. The catalog is assembled from WISE sources detected in all four WISE filters, with colors compatible with the three-dimensional locus of the WISE γ-ray emitting blazars, and which can be spatially cross-matched with radio sources from one of the three radio surveys: NVSS, FIRST, and/or SUMSS. Our initial WISE selection uses a slightly modified version of previously successful algorithms. We then select only the radio-loud sources using a measure of the radio-to-IR flux, the q 22 parameter, which is analogous to the q 24 parameter known in the literature but which instead uses the WISE band-four flux at 22 μm. Our final catalog contains 7855 sources classified as BL Lacs, FSRQs, or mixed candidate blazars; 1295 of these sources can be spatially re-associated as confirmed blazars. We describe the properties of the final catalog of WISE blazar-like radio-loud sources and consider possible contaminants. Finally, we discuss why this large catalog of candidate γ-ray emitting blazars represents a new and useful resource to address the problem of finding low-energy counterparts to currently unidentified high-energy sources.
- Publication:
-
The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
- Pub Date:
- November 2014
- DOI:
- 10.1088/0067-0049/215/1/14
- arXiv:
- arXiv:1410.0029
- Bibcode:
- 2014ApJS..215...14D
- Keywords:
-
- BL Lacertae objects: general;
- catalogs;
- galaxies: active;
- radiation mechanisms: non-thermal;
- Astrophysics - High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
- E-Print:
- 15 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in ApJS