The Apache Point Observatory Catalog of Optical Diffuse Interstellar Bands

Abstract

Abstract Aiming for a new and more comprehensive DIB catalog between 4000 and 9000 Å, we revisited the Atlas Catalog based on the observations of HD 183143 and HD 204827. Twenty-five medium to highly reddened sight lines were selected, sampling a variety of spectral types of the background star and the interstellar environments. The median signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) of these spectra is ∼1300 around 6400 Å. Compared to the Atlas Catalog, 22 new DIBs were found, and the boundaries of 27 (sets of) DIBs were adjusted, resulting in an updated catalog containing 559 DIBs that we refer to as the Apache Point Observatory Catalog of Optical Diffuse Interstellar Bands. Measurements were then made based on this catalog. We found our survey most sensitive between 5500 and 7000 Å, due largely to the local S/N of the spectra, the relative absence of interfering stellar lines, and the weakness of telluric residuals. For our data sample, the number of DIBs detected in a given sight line is mostly dependent on E B−V and less on the spectral type of the background star. Some dependence on the molecular fraction f H2 is observed, but it is less well determined owing to the limited size of the data sample. The variations of the wavelengths of each DIB in different sight lines are generally larger than those of the known interstellar lines CH+, CH, and K i. Those variations could be due to the inherent error in the measurement, or to differences in the velocity components among sight lines.