Data Access for SDSS DR13 Overview

This page explains how to access DR13 data, and provides links to various data access tools.

What is in DR13?

Data Release 13 includes these types of data:

The SDSS web sites offer several different online data access tools, each suited to a particular need. These access tools are described in the table below.

These site are described in more detail in the Available Tools page.

Data Access Sites

Website
Purpose
www.sdss4.org/dr13
DR13 Documentation (this site)
dr13.sdss.org
Science Archive Webapp: interactive search-view-download tool for infrared and optical spectra, imaging fields, and image mosaic creation.
data.sdss.org/sas/dr13
Direct download access to DR13 data files for experts
data.sdss.org/datamodel
Details of the SAS directory structure, file formats, and the contents of each file
skyserver.sdss.org/dr13
SkyServer: Browser-based access to the Catalog Archive Server (CAS) database, with resources for learning SQL and projects to teach science
skyserver.sdss.org/casjobs
Flexible advanced SQL-based interface to the CAS, for all data releases

How to find…

The sections below are organized by type of data. Each section includes a table that describes a common task you might perform with that type of data, along with a link to the best tool for that task.

If your question isn’t addressed here, please look at the Frequently Asked Questions and/or Tutorials help pages.

If you are having difficulty connecting to any data server, please check the status page for announcements about planned outages.

Images

The SDSS has taken deep images of more than one-third of the entire night sky. You can view SDSS images online for any object or sky position in the survey area, and download images of SDSS fields as FITS files.

I need to…
Tool to use
browse through sky images
Navigate
create a telescope finding chart
Finding chart
search-view-download SDSS imaging fields
Imaging Field Search
generate SDSS imaging mosaics
Imaging Mosaics
get a list of thumbnails
Image List

Since some stars were targeted for APOGEE infrared spectroscopy using 2MASS survey data, we also offer access to 2MASS images through the Navigate tool (click on the 2MASS button).

Data from the SDSS-II Supernova Survey is not available in DR8-13, but is available in its entirety at the SDSS-II Supernova Survey website.

Optical Spectra

DR13 includes all optical spectra from the original SDSS-I/-II, SEGUE, and BOSS, as well as additional optical spectra measured as part of the Sloan Extended Quasar, ELG, and LRG Survey (SEQUELS) program.

I need to…
Tool to use
know whether SDSS has measured an optical spectrum for my object
Navigate
explore the optical spectra platelist
Optical Plate Search
search-download FITS files with the optical spectrum for my object(s):
Optical Spectrum Search
view the optical spectrum for my object(s):
Optical Spectrum View
get 50,000 spectra
Bulk download documentation
know which optical spectroscopic data files are available
Spectroscopic pipeline description
understand the format of a specific data file
Data Model

APOGEE Spectra

DR13 includes all APOGEE infrared spectra measured so far, reprocessed with additional element abundances. The new element abundances brings the total number of species to 23: C, CI, N, O, Na, Mg, Al, Si, P, S, K, Ca, Ti, TiII, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Ge, and Rb.

I need to…
Tool to use
know whether the SDSS has measured an infrared spectrum for my object
Navigate
explore the infrared spectra platelist
Infrared Plate Search
search-download FITS files with the infrared spectrum for my object(s)
Infrared Spectrum Search
view the infrared visits for my object(s)
Infrared Spectrum View Visits
view the infrared stars (combined or ASPCAP spectra) for my object(s)
Infrared Spectrum View Stars
get 50,000 infrared spectra
Bulk download documentation
know which APOGEE spectra data files are available
Spectroscopic pipeline description
get all measured parameters for all APOGEE stars at once
allStar and allVisit files

MaNGA Spectra

Data Release 13 marks the first release of the SDSS’s Mapping Nearby Galaxies at APO (MaNGA) survey. DR13 includes summary data on MaNGA targets and raw data consisting of data cubes. Further processed data products will be released as part of future data releases.

I need to…
Tool to use
see summary data from SDSS IFU observations for my object
Explore: MaNGA
learn how to download data cubes
MaNGA data access
download MaNGA data by plate
SAS data browser for MaNGA
learn other ways to access MaNGA data
MaNGA tutorials

MARVELS Spectra

DR13 includes all MARVELS Interferometry spectra.

I need to…
Tool to use
view and retrieve MARVELS data
MARVELS data

Catalog Data

Catalog data summarize quantities measured from the images and spectra such as magnitudes, redshifts, and object classifications. These are available either from the Catalog Archive Server (CAS) database, or as binary tables in FITS file format.

I need to…
Tool to use
find all objects which match some simple selection criteria
SkyServer SQL Search
learn how to write SQL queries
SQL Tutorial or SQL in SkyServer or Sample Queries
perform a complicated, CPU-intensive query of SDSS catalog data
CasJobs
generate my own database with custom tables of a subset of SDSS data
CasJobs
understand the CAS database schema:
Schema Browser
download fits files with the catalog data
See the bulk download documentation
understand the format of a specific catalog data file
Data Model