Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: We present the first systematic spectroscopic observations of extragalactic transients from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), as part of the DESI Transients Survey program. With 5000 fibers and an ∼8 deg 2 field of view, we exploit DESI as a machine for the discovery and classification of transients. We present transient classifications from archival DESI data in Data Releases 1 and 2, relying on a combination of a secondary target program and serendipitous observations. We also present observations from the first 6 months of the DESI spare fiber program dedicated to transients. The program is run in coordination with a dedicated DECam time-domain survey, serving as a pathfinder for what we will be able to achieve in conjunction with the Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST). We classify over 250 transients, of which the majority were previously unclassified. The sample comprises thermonuclear and core-collapse supernovae and tidal disruption events (TDEs), including a TDE observed before its discovery in imaging. We demonstrate DESI’s ability to classify a population of faint transients down to r ∼ 22.5 mag during main survey operations, with negligible impacts on DESI’s main observations. With the start of Rubin LSST operations, we expect to classify O ( 1000 ) transients per year.
Authors: Xander J. Hall, Antonella Palmese, Segev BenZvi, John Banovetz, Brendan O’Connor, Lei Hu, Erica Hammerstein, Ariel Amsellem, Jessica Nicole Aguilar, Steven Ahlen, Steven Bailey, Davide Bianchi, David Brooks, Todd Claybaugh, Andrei Cuceu, Kyle Dawson, Axel de la Macorra, John Della Costa, Arjun Dey, Peter Doel, Simone Ferraro, Andreu Font-Ribera, Jaime E. Forero-Romero, Enrique Gaztañaga, Satya Gontcho A Gontcho, Alma Xochitl Gonzalez-Morales, Or Graur, Gaston Gutierrez, Mustapha Ishak, Jorge Jimenez, Dick Joyce, Stephanie Juneau, Anthony Kremin, Ofer Lahav, Claire Lamman, Martin Landriau, Laurent Le Guillou, Alexie Leauthaud, Michael Levi, Marc Manera, Aaron Meisner, Ramon Miquel, John Moustakas, Adam Myers, Seshadri Nadathur, Will Percival, Claire Poppett, Ignasi Pérez-Ràfols, Francisco Prada, Graziano Rossi, Eusebio Sanchez, Edward Schlafly, David Schlegel, Michael Schubnell, David Sprayberry, Gregory Tarlé, Benjamin Alan Weaver, Rongpu Zhou, Hu Zou
Institutions: Carnegie Mellon University, University of Rochester, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Boston University, University of Milan, Brera Astronomical Observatory, National Institute for Astrophysics, University College London, University of Utah, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, San Diego State University, NSF NOIRLab, Institute for High Energy Physics, Universidad de Los Andes, Institut d'Estudis Espacials de Catalunya, University of Portsmouth, University of Virginia, Universidad de Guanajuato, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, The University of Texas at Dallas, The Ohio State University, Sorbonne Université, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats, University of Siena, University of Wyoming, University of Waterloo, Perimeter Institute, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Sejong University, Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas, Space Telescope Science Institute, University of Michigan, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Language: English
Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $4,499
Funders: National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Energy, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, California Institute of Technology, Carnegie Mellon University, Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives, Office of Science, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Science and Technology Facilities Council, Agencia Estatal de Investigación, Division of Astronomical Sciences, High Energy Physics, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Awards: G1044631029, G1079818582, G1105844351, G1143651532, G1175115578, G1286236842, G1632040200, G1813527838, G1863003419, G2262748287, G2550080368, G294895050, G300979063, G3083819904, G3452655474, G3480869486, G419881185, G425668148, G42916606, G4501827968, Probing the Universe's expansion and gravitational wave sources with ground-based optical telescopes, G491712853, G498139845, G5080475149, G5635532810, G593054264, G6652958823, G6876926712, G7084143925, Management and Operations of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory, G7354628648, G7395345766, G7441047379, G759921648, G7805626310, G7863371703, G8345352404, G8497050386, G8667377315, G969889393
OpenAlex ID: W7165812784