The Image List tool lets you search through thumbnail images for a list of objects, or for the results of your SQL search. The Image List tool is one of the most powerful tools on SkyServer, especially when combined with a SQL search. You can look through hundreds of objects in just a few minutes, focusing in on the objects that are most interesting to you.
To get images, enter a list of positions in the text box in the upper left, then click "Get Image." The list must be in the format (ra,dec) or (name,ra,dec), or you will get an error message. The list may or may not have labels in the first row. The images will appear as thumbnails in the main frame. When you see an image you like, click on it to launch the Navigation tool centered on that object (it will appear in a new window).
You can also create the list from the results of a SQL query. To use a query, click "Use query to fill form" above the textbox. A query window will appear; type your query in the window. The query must have a specific form - the select block must return only columns labeled name, ra, and dec. Click Submit to run the query. If you wrote the query correctly, you will see the results in a textbox on the next page. Click "Send to List" to send the results of your search to the Image List tool. If your query returns more than 40 results, click the page numbers at the top of the main window to see other pages.
Use the Zoom bar (the magnifying glasses and rectangles under "Get Image") to zoom in our out on the center of each of your images. You can also zoom by changing the image scale with the "Scale" box. Enter the scale in arcseconds per pixel. You can print out the thumbnail images by clicking the printer icon.
In addition, the Image List tool can add several optional features to your image and/or printout. To turn on an optional feature, click the checkbox next to its name. The features will be added to every thumbnail image. The optional features are:
Grid overlays a grid and scale
Label overlays a label with the RA/Dec of the image center, along with the image's scale and zoom factor
PhotoObjs puts blue circles around all the objects that the SDSS photo algorithms identified
SpecObjs puts red squares around all objects for which the SDSS has measured spectra
Outline marks the outlines of all photometrically identified objects in the images
BoundingBox puts a box around the outline for each object in the images
Fields marks the boundaries of SDSS fields in the images
Masks marks any regions masked out of the science data (masks are applied for a variety of reasons)
Plates shows the boundaries of SDSS spectroscopic plates on the images (plates are 3 degrees across)
InvertImage inverts the colors for the onscreen display of the Image List (images are automatically inverted by the printing utility)