The Stellar Abundances and Galactic Evolution Survey (SAGES). V. The First Data Release of the DDO51 Band

Abstract

We present the first public data release of DDO51 band from the Stellar Abundances and Galactic Evolution Survey (SAGES), based on Nanshan One-meter Wide-field Telescope (NOWT) observations obtained between 2023 September and 2024 January. This release initiates the DDO51-band component of the survey, covering $\sim$ 2,500 deg$^2$ of the northern sky and including more than 10 million sources. The DDO51 filter is centered near the \ion{Mg}{1}~$b$ triplet and the adjacent MgH feature, offering sensitivity to stellar surface gravity. The data reduction pipeline incorporates an improved astrometric solution anchored to Gaia DR3 and a photometric calibration strategy tied to synthetic photometry from Gaia XP spectra. These procedures yield a point-source depth of $\sim$18.9 mag at S/N$\sim$10 and an internal photometric precision $\approx$6-7 mmag at the bright end. A preliminary color--color analysis using Gaia broadband photometry confirms the expected sensitivity of the DDO51 band to stellar surface gravity, demonstrating a clear photometric separation between dwarf and giant sequences for late-type stars. This dataset, when combined with existing SAGES photometry in other bands, provides a crucial tool for disentangling the substructures of the Milky Way. All data products from this release upon publication will be available.