DESI Key Publications¶
This page provides a curated list of key DESI technical papers useful for understanding and using the DESI data, as well as the cosmology and supporting papers.
Recent Highlights¶
On July 30, 2026, the DESI collaboration released one Key Publication covering further Cosmology Results using future Data Release 2:
- DESI Collaboration et al. (2026), DESI DR2 Results IV: Alcock-Paczynski measurements from the Lyman Alpha Forest and Cosmological Constraints
together with the companion supporting papers
- Herbold et al. (2026), Validation of the DESI DR2 Lyα forest full-shape analysis
- Chaves-Montero et al. (2026), Lyman-α forest holography: 3D predictions from 1D measurements
- Ruiz-Herrera Bernal et al. (2026), CoLoRe-2LPT: Lyman-α mock catalogues for the validation of DESI cosmological analysis
DR2 Publications¶
Cosmology Results¶
- Cosmology results using DR2 are available here.
For further context about these results visit the Guides to DESI DR2 Results (March 19, 2025), and associated blog posts (July 30, 2026). The underlying spectra and redshifts for DR2 have not yet been released, though data files for the DR2 BAO cosmology chains and posterior maximization results are now available.
DR1 Publications¶
Data Release¶
DESI’s first year of data was released on March 19, 2025. The following publication describes in detail this data release. Public DR1 data and documentation can be found here.
- DESI Collaboration et al. (2026), Data Release 1 of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
Cosmology results¶
- Cosmology results using DR1 are available here.
For further context about these results visit the Guides to DESI Year 1 Results (April 4, 2024) and (November 19, 2024).
Technical Papers¶
Instrumentation¶
- Overview: DESI Collaboration et al. (2022), Overview of the Instrumentation for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
- Fiber System: Poppett et al. (2024), Overview of the Fiber System for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
- Focal Plane: Silber et al. (2023), The Robotic Multiobject Focal Plane System of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
- Optical Corrector: Miller et al. (2024), The Optical Corrector for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
- Spectrograph: Jelinsky et al. (in preparation), The Spectrograph System for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
Data Acquisition and Reduction¶
- Spectroscopic Pipeline: Guy et al. (2023), The Spectroscopic Data Processing Pipeline for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
- Redshift Fitting: Bailey et al. (in preparation), Redrock: Spectroscopic Classification and Redshift Fitting for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
- Fiber Assignment: Raichoor et al. (in preparation)
- Survey Design and Simulations: Schlafly et al. (2023), Survey Operations for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
Target Selection and Survey Validation¶
Overview¶
- DESI Collaboration et al. (2024), Validation of the Scientific Program for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
- Myers et al. (2023), The Target Selection Pipeline for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
BGS: Bright Galaxy Survey¶
- Hahn et al. (2023), DESI Bright Galaxy Survey: Final Target Selection, Design, and Validation
- Juneau et al. (2025), Identifying Missing Quasars from the DESI Bright Galaxy Survey
- Ruiz-Macias et al. (2020), Preliminary Target Selection for the DESI Bright Galaxy Survey
LRG: Luminous Red Galaxies¶
- Zhou et al. (2023), Target Selection and Validation of DESI Luminous Red Galaxies
- Zhou et al. (2020), Preliminary Target Selection for the DESI Luminous Red Galaxy (LRG) Sample
ELG: Emission Line Galaxies¶
- Raichoor et al. (2023), Target Selection and Validation of DESI Emission Line Galaxies
- Raichoor et al. (2020), Preliminary Target Selection for the DESI Emission Line Galaxy (ELG) Sample
QSO: Quasars¶
- Chaussidon et al. (2023), Target Selection and Validation of DESI Quasars
- Yèche et al. (2020), Preliminary Target Selection for the DESI Quasar (QSO) Sample
MWS: Milky Way Survey¶
- Cooper et al. (2023), Overview of the DESI Milky Way Survey
- Allende Prieto et al. (2020), Preliminary Target Selection for the DESI Milky Way Survey
Visual Inspection¶
- Lan et al. (2023), The DESI Survey Validation: Results from Visual Inspection of Bright Galaxies, Luminous Red Galaxies, and Emission Line Galaxies
- Alexander et al. (2023), The DESI Survey Validation: Results from Visual Inspection of the Quasar Survey Spectra
Imaging Surveys¶
- Dey et al. (2019), Overview of the DESI Legacy Imaging Surveys
- Zou et al. (2017), Project Overview of the Beijing-Arizona Sky Survey
Early Data Release¶
- DESI Collaboration et al. (2024), The Early Data Release of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
Public EDR data and documentation can be found here. Papers released with the EDR are available here.
All DESI Publications¶
A comprehensive list of DESI publications, including additional science papers, can be found in here.