A Wide Field, Low Frequency Radio Survey of the Field of M31: I. Construction and Statistical Analysis of the Source Catalog

We present here the results of a 325 MHz radio survey of M31, conducted with the A-configuration of the Very Large Array. The survey covered an area of 7.6 deg, and a total of 405 radio sources between .6 and 170 in extent were mapped with a resolution of 6 and a 1σ sensitivity of ∼0.6 mJy beam. For each source, its morphological class, major axis θM , minor axis θm, position angle θPA, peak flux I, integrated flux density S, spectral index α and spectral curvature parameter φ were calculated. A comparison of the flux and radial distribution – both in the plane of the sky and in the plane of M31 – of these sources with those of the XMM–LSS and WENSS radio surveys revealed that a vast majority of sources detected are background radio galaxies. As a result of this analysis, we expect that only a few sources are intrinsic to M31. These sources are identified and discussed in an accompanying paper. Subject headings: catalogs — galaxies: individual (M31) — radio continuum: general — radio continuum: galaxies