AllBRICQS: the All-sky BRIght, Complete Quasar Survey

TL;DR

The AllBRICQS survey has identified 156 bright quasars across the sky, including many new discoveries, significantly expanding the catalog of optically bright quasars for future astrophysical research.

Contribution

This work presents the first results from a new all-sky survey combining Gaia and WISE data to discover bright quasars, achieving high completeness and purity in identification.

Findings

156 spectroscopically confirmed quasars, 140 newly identified

High completeness (~96%) and purity (~96%) in quasar selection

Discovery of extremely luminous high-redshift quasar J0529-4351

Abstract

We describe the first results from the All-sky BRIght, Complete Quasar Survey (AllBRICQS), which aims to discover the last remaining optically bright quasars. We present 156 spectroscopically confirmed quasars (140 newly identified) having |b|>10deg. 152 of the quasars have Gaia DR3 magnitudes brighter than B_P=16.5 or R_P=16 mag, while four are slightly fainter. The quasars span a redshift range of z=0.07-3.93. In particular, we highlight the properties of J0529-4351 at z=3.93, which, if unlensed, is one of the most intrinsically luminous quasars in the Universe. The AllBRICQS sources have been selected by combining data from the Gaia and WISE all-sky satellite missions, and we successfully identify quasars not flagged as candidates by Gaia Data Release 3. We expect the completeness to be approximately 96% within our magnitude and latitude limits, while the preliminary results indicate a selection purity of approximately 96%. The optical spectroscopy used for source classification will also enable detailed quasar characterisation, including black hole mass measurements and identification of foreground absorption systems. The AllBRICQS sources will greatly enhance the number of quasars available for high-signal-to-noise follow-up with present and future facilities.