The Sloan Digital Sky Survey V has released Data Release 20, marking a significant expansion of its ongoing effort to map the cosmos through spectroscopic observations. This release incorporates the first optical spectra collected from the Southern Hemisphere through observations made with the du Pont telescope at Las Campanas Observatory in Chile, combined with data from the Sloan Foundation telescope at Apache Point Observatory. The integration of observations from both hemispheres enables astronomers to conduct comprehensive studies across the entire sky.
DR20 contains over three million spectra representing approximately 1.5 million distinct objects, along with 18 value-added catalogs and new visualization tools designed to facilitate research. The dataset includes detailed observations of black holes, interstellar gas, and stellar objects across multiple scientific programs. One notable component involves coordinated observations with the eROSITA X-ray All-Sky Survey, which pairs X-ray detections with optical measurements to identify active galactic nuclei, galaxy clusters, and active stars.
The Black Hole Mapper component of SDSS-V experienced substantial growth in this release, expanding to approximately 1.1 million optical spectra covering roughly 500,000 distinct objects. This expansion more than triples the data available in the previous release and includes contributions from programs studying how supermassive black holes change over time through repeated observations. The Milky Way Mapper survey similarly expanded, adding extensive optical stellar observations including rare carbon-enhanced metal-poor stars from the Magellanic Clouds and intermediate-mass stripped stars.
The Local Volume Mapper component now includes integral field spectroscopy maps covering 169 tiles and approximately 300,000 spectra of Galactic regions, planetary nebulae, and nearby galaxies. A new interactive visualization tool called LVMvis was introduced to help researchers explore this growing dataset and examine the distribution of glowing gas across the sky. All data is made freely available to the public through multiple platforms, including the Science Archive Server and interactive computing environments, accompanied by tutorials and educational materials.
The collaborative effort behind DR20 involved an international team of astronomers supported by funding from multiple institutions and foundations. Development is already underway for subsequent data releases, with discussions focused on the scope and organization of future datasets.
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