JADES Initial Data Release for the Hubble Ultra Deep Field: Revealing the Faint Infrared Sky with Deep JWST NIRCam Imaging

TL;DR

The paper presents the first data release of JADES NIRCam imaging for the HUDF, delivering deep 9-band infrared mosaics over ~25 arcmin^2 and incorporating 5 JEMS medium-band images to enhance spectral sampling. It details a comprehensive processing pipeline (Stages 1–3) including customized flat-fielding, 1/f noise and wisps removal, persistence masking, and precise astrometric alignment to Gaia/HST, culminating in high-fidelity drizzled mosaics. It provides a richly described photometric catalog with detection via a NoiseChisel-inspired pipeline, PSF-matched photometry across 23 bands, and EAZY-derived photometric redshifts, all validated against CANDELS, IRAC, and extensive spectroscopy. The release, accessible via STScI and JHU portals, establishes a valuable resource for studying the infrared universe and sets the stage for future expansions to deeper GOODS-S/N fields and richer spectroscopic campaigns.

Abstract

JWST has revolutionized the field of extragalactic astronomy with its sensitive and high-resolution infrared view of the distant universe. Adding to the new legacy of JWST observations, we present the first NIRCam imaging data release from the JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey (JADES) providing 9 filters of infrared imaging of $\sim$25 arcmin$^2$ covering the Hubble Ultra Deep Field and portions of Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS) South. Utilizing 87 on-sky dual-filter hours of exposure time, these images reveal the deepest ever near-infrared view of this iconic field. We supply carefully constructed 9-band mosaics of the JADES bands, as well as matching reductions of 5 additional bands from the JWST Extragalactic Medium-band Survey (JEMS). Combining with existing HST imaging, we provide 23-band space-based photometric catalogs and photometric redshifts for $\approx47,500$ sources. To promote broad engagement with the JADES survey, we have created an interactive {\tt FitsMap} website to provide an interface for professional researchers and the public to experience these JWST datasets. Combined with the first JADES NIRSpec data release, these public JADES imaging and spectroscopic datasets provide a new foundation for discoveries of the infrared universe by the worldwide scientific community.

Figures (14)

• Figure 1: Field layout of the first JADES data release images relative to other surveys in the GOODS-S region. The coverage of the JADES F277W imaging in this first data release is shown as a grayscale image, and is representative of the coverage in each JADES filter. This portion of the JADES survey covers the HST WFC3 Ultra Deep Field ellis2013aillingworth2013a, the HST ACS Ultra Deep Field beckwith2006a, the MUSE Ultra Deep Field mosaic bacon2017a, and the MUSE Extremely Deep Field bacon2021a. The blue circles outline the 10-hour and 100-hour MUSE exposure depths. The JWST Extragalactic Medium-band Survey williams2023a, shown using an orange,dashed line, overlaps with the HST UDF and the JADES NIRCam imaging. We incorporate the JEMS imaging into this release, with uniform processing.
• Figure 2: False color image of the JADES NIRCam mosaic. Shown are logarithmic scalings of F444W (red), F277W (green), and F115W (blue) filter images on a 0.3" pixel scale. The scale bar indicates one arcminute. The white regions are areas with incomplete short wavelength coverage.
• Figure 3: Scaling of blank-sky RMS flux within random apertures as a function of aperture diameter. Shown are 100 scalings of the image noise, normalized to the single pixel noise, with linear aperture size for the F200W mosaic where the random apertures are split into percentiles in exposure time. The typical power law scaling is $\beta=1.29 \pm0.04$, compared with the idealized $\beta=1$ for uncorrelated pixels (blue line) and worst-case $\beta=2$ for perfectly correlated pixels (orange line).
• Figure 4: Distribution of exposure times in the JADES NIRCam F090W, F115W, F150W, F200W, F277W, F335M, F356W, F410M, F444W and JEMS NIRCam F182M, F210M, F430M, F460M, and F480M images. Exposure times range from $t\approx13900$s over $Area\sim10$ arcmin$^2$ in F460M to $t\approx13700-60500$s over $Area\sim5-25$ arcmin$^2$ in F115W.
• Figure 5: Exposure maps for the JADES NIRCam mosaics. Shown are the JADES F090W, F115W, F150W, F200W, F277W, F335M, F356W, F410m, and F444W filter exposures. Bright regions indicate areas of increased depth, as reflected by the color bar scale.