Bad chart in DR12 (follow-up of GZ thread http://www.galaxyzooforum.org/index.php?topic=10095)

• by c_cld

  1237657606964051997

  overlap on irregular galaxy 587731885739147290 posted in GZ by kodemunkey August 10, 2007

  ![1237657606964051997]

  http://dr12.sdss3.org/spectrumDetail?plateid=4606&mjd=56223&fiber=740

  

  misclassified as QSO broadline due to bad mapping lines!

  Posted January 7, 2015 7:29 AM

• by c_cld

  1237651252551156452

  

  

  bad mapping lines!

  Posted January 8, 2015 10:05 AM

• by c_cld

  1237664579836903570

  

  bad mapping line!

  Posted January 9, 2015 5:26 PM

• by c_cld

  1237678920748236873

  

  5246757441429499904 interactive boss spectrum:

  

  bad mapping lines!

  Posted January 15, 2015 6:08 PM

• by JeanTate in response to C_cld's comment.

  misclassified as QSO broadline due to bad mapping lines!

  Indeed.

  Except for one (more?) pesky little detail, this is a z ~=0.0067 spectrum, with nice Balmer series emission lines, very strong [OIII], [OII], ... nebular lines, ...

  The 'pesky detail' is that [OIII]5008 is much weaker than [OIII]4960 😮 😮 😮

  Rather than being a serendipitous discovery showing that quantum mechanics is flawed, or that this is some amazing astrophysical source (a kind of giant laser perhaps), I think it's more likely due to some failure in the spectroscope, or the spectroscopic pipeline.

  In any case, the bright blue ~point-like source is not a far distant QSO, but a quite local star/starburst/whatever.

  Posted January 19, 2015 10:05 PM