Optical Counterparts to X-Ray Sources in LSST DP1
Abstract
Abstract We present a crossmatch between a combined catalog of X-ray sources and the Vera C. Rubin Observatory Data Preview 1 (DP1) to identify optical counterparts. The six fields targeted as part of DP1 include the Extended Chandra Deep Field South (E-CDF-S), the Euclid Deep Field South, the Fornax Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy (Fornax dSph), 47 Tucanae (47 Tuc), and science validation fields with low Galactic and ecliptic latitude (SV_95_-25 and SV_38_7, respectively). We find matches to 2314 of 3830 X-ray sources. We also compare our crossmatch to DP1 in the E-CDF-S field to previous efforts to identify optical counterparts. The probability of a chance coincidence match varies across each DP1 field, with overall high reliability in the E-CDF-S field, and a lower proportion of high-reliability matches in the other fields. The majority of previously known sources that we detect are, unsurprisingly, active galaxies. We plot the X-ray-to-optical flux ratio against optical magnitude and color in an effort to identify Galactic accreting compact objects using a Gaia color threshold transformed to LSST g − i , but do not find any strong candidates in these primarily extragalactic counterparts. The DP1 dataset contains high-cadence photometry collected over a number of nights. We calculate the Stetson J variability index for each object under the hypothesis that X-ray counterparts tend to exhibit higher optical variability; however, the evidence is inconclusive whether our sample is more variable over DP1 timescales when compared to field objects.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Galaxies: Formation
Evolution
Phenomena
Astrophysical Phenomena and Observations
Astronomy and Astrophysical Research
Publication details
- Journal / source
- The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
- Publisher
- American Astronomical Society
- Volume
- 284
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 13–13
- Publication date
- 23 April 2026
- Language
- EN