VPCX 8 , the SIMBAD biblio

We present a new catalogue of galaxies in the direction of the Virgo Cluster's core: the Virgo Photometry Catalogue (VPC). This catalogue contains 1180 galaxies (including background objects) within a 23 square-degree area of the sky centred on R.A._1950.0=12^h26^m and Dec._1950.0=13°08'. The VPC galaxy sample comprises of non-stellar objects brighter than B_J25=19.0; the completeness limits being B_J25≃18.5 for the northern half of the survey area and B_J25≃18.0 for the southern half. Independently-calibrated photographic surface photometry is presented for over 1000 galaxies in the U, B_J and R_C bands. Parameters listed for catalogued galaxies include: equatorial coordinates, morphological types, surface-brightness profile parameters (which preserve the majority of the original surface photometry information), U, B_J & R_C isophotal magnitudes, B_J and [transformed] B total magnitudes, (U-B_J) and (B_J-R_C) equal-area and total colours, apparent angular radii, ellipticities, position angles, heliocentric radial velocities and alternative designations. All total magnitudes and total colours are extrapolated according to a new system denoted t in order to distinguish it from the T system already in use. The VPC is based primarily on four (one U, two B_J and one R_C) UK-Schmidt plates, all of which were digitised using the Royal Observatory Edinburgh's (ROE) COSMOS measuring machine. All magnitudes, colours and surface-brightness parameters are derived from numerical integrations of segmented plate-scan data, except for (in 109 cases) saturated or (in 51 cases) inextricably-merged images; our segmentation software being able to cope with the vast majority of image mergers.