THE VLA 1.4 GHz SURVEY OF THE EXTENDED CHANDRA DEEP FIELD-SOUTH: FIRST DATA RELEASE

We have observed the Extended Chandra Deep Field-South (E-CDF-S) using a mosaic of six deep Very Large Array (VLA) pointings at 1.4 GHz. In this paper, we present the survey strategy, description of the observations, and the first data release. The observations were performed during June through September of 2007 and included from 15 to 17 "classic'' VLA antennas and 6 to 11 that had been retrofitted for the Expanded VLA (EVLA). The first data release consists of a 34.1' x 34.1' image and the attendant source catalog. The image achieves an rms sensitivity of 6.4 mu Jy per 2.8 '' x 1.6 '' beam in its deepest regions, with a typical sensitivity of 8 mu Jy. The catalog is conservative in that it only lists sources with peak flux densities greater than seven times the local rms noise, yet it still contains 464 sources. Nineteen of these are complex sources consisting of multiple components. Cross matching of the catalog to prior surveys of the E-CDF-S confirms the linearity of the flux density calibration, albeit with a slight possible offset ( a few percent) in scale. Improvements to the data reduction and source catalog are ongoing, and we intend to produce a second data release in 2009 January.