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SQL Search
This page allows you to directly submit a SQL (Structured Query Language) query to the SDSS database server. You can modify the default query as you wish, or cut and paste a query from the SDSS Sample Queries page.

Please note: To be fair to other users, queries run from SkyServer search tools are restricted in how long they can run and how much output they return, by timeouts and row limits. Please see the Query Limits help page. To run a query that is not restricted by a timeout or number of rows returned, please use the CasJobs batch query service.

  Check Syntax Only?
Output Format HTML XML CSV

To find out more about the database schema use the Schema Browser.

For an introduction to the Structured Query Language (SQL), please see the Searching for Data How-To tutorial. In particular, please read the Optimizing Queries section.

The inclusion of the imaging and spectro columns for SAS upload in your query (as in the default query on this page) will ensure that when you press Submit, the appropriate button(s) are displayed on the query results page to allow you to upload the necessary information to the SAS to retrieve the FITS file data corresponding to your CAS query. The imaging columns needed for upload to the SAS are run, rerun, camcol, and field. The spectroscopic columns needed are plate, mjd, fiberid, and optionally sprerun (the latter requires a join with the PlateX table).