Recalibration of SDSS photometric zero-points based on the InfraRed Flux Method temperature scale

Clicks: 1
ID: 313991
2026
Free PDF
Article Quality & Performance Metrics
Overall Quality
Not rated
Combines reader engagement with the AI quality analysis. This article has not been analysed, so there is no overall score — reader engagement is measured and shown alongside.
AI Quality Assessment
Not analyzed
Readership in this journal

Ranked #491 of 897 articles by views in monthly notices of the royal astronomical society

Most read Least read

Bar heights use a square-root scale. Only the 120 most-read articles are drawn; the journal has 897 in total.

Mint this article as an NFT
Not yet minted

Create a permanent, verifiable on-chain record of this article on the Scimatic Network. The NFT is held in your Journament account, and you can withdraw it to your own wallet at any time.

5 SUSD one-off · no wallet required
Sign in to mint
Abstract
Abstract Accurate photometric zero-points are essential for translating observed magnitudes into physical fluxes, from comparing with models to ensuring consistency across surveys. We determine the zero-points needed to place the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) ugriz system on its nominal AB definition, by exploiting the sensitivity of the Infrared Flux Method (IRFM) to broadband flux calibration. Using benchmark effective temperatures for over 6,000 FGK-type stars, we invert the method to identify the zero-point corrections required for SDSS photometry to reproduce the adopted temperature scale. The r band is found to be very well standardized, while the i and z bands show offsets of a few hundredths of a magnitude, consistent with previous studies. We also find a small offset in the g band. The largest discrepancy occurs in the u band, where the derived offset depends strongly on the adopted filter transmission curves, in particular whether one uses the original definition commonly adopted in the literature or the updated measurements that account for the presence of a red leak. This effect introduces a colour-dependent zero-point offset that becomes apparent when using a sample of late-type stars. Independent comparisons with CALSPEC spectrophotometric standards and Gaia XP spectra broadly support the offsets derived from the IRFM analysis. Our results provide a revised set of SDSS zero-points anchored to the IRFM temperature scale and demonstrate that large stellar samples can be used to constrain photometric calibration. The methodology presented here offers a complementary approach to traditional spectrophotometric calibration and may prove useful for future large-scale surveys.
Reference Key
openalex_W7161552268 Use this key to autocite in the manuscript while using SciMatic Manuscript Manager or Thesis Manager
Authors Zenghua Zhou, L. Casagrande, Heran Xiong, Yanjun Guo, Jiajia Li, Zhanwen Han, Xuefei Chen
Journal monthly notices of the royal astronomical society
Year 2026
DOI
10.1093/mnras/stag942
URL
https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stag942
Keywords Keywords not found

Citations

No citations found. To add a citation, contact the admin at info@scimatic.org

Comments

No comments yet. Be the first to comment on this article.