2006ApJ...639..816E

Using the Florida Multi-object Imaging Near-IR Grism Observational Spectrometer (FLAMINGOS), we have conducted the FLAMINGOS Extragalactic Survey (FLAMEX), a deep imaging survey covering 7.1 deg² within the 18.6 deg² NOAO Deep Wide-Field Survey (NDWFS) regions. FLAMEX is the first deep, wide-area, near-infrared survey to image in both the J and K_sfilters, and is larger than any previous NIR survey of comparable depth. The intent of FLAMEX is to facilitate the study of galaxy and galaxy cluster evolution at 1<z<2 by providing rest-frame optical photometry for the massive galaxy population at this epoch. This effort is designed to yield a public data set that complements and augments the suite of existing surveys in the NDWFS fields. We present an overview of FLAMEX and initial results based on ∼150,000 K_s_-selected sources in the Boötes field. We describe the observations and reductions, quantify the data quality, and verify that the number counts are consistent with results from previous surveys. Finally, we comment on the utility of this sample for detailed study of the ERO population, and present one of the first spectroscopically confirmed z>1 galaxy clusters detected using the joint FLAMEX, NDWFS, and Spitzer IRAC Shallow Survey data sets.