J, H, K, and L photometry for the stars in the central ~2' (~5pc) of the Galaxy are presented. Using the observed J-H, H-K, and K-L colors and assumed intrinsic colors, we determine the interstellar extinction at 2.2mm (A_K_) for approximately 1100 individual stars. The mean A_K_ (=3.3mag) is similar to previous results, but we find that the reddening is highly variable, and some stars are likely to be seen through A_K_>6mag. The dereddened K-band luminosity function points to a significantly brighter component to the stellar population (>1.5mag at K) than found in the stellar population in Baade's window, confirming previous work done at lower spatial resolution. The observed flux of all Galactic center stars with estimated K0 (dereddened magnitude) =<7.0mag is ~25% of the total in the 2'x2' field. The data were obtained in July 11-13 on the 4m telescope at the Cerro Tololo Observatory (CTIO) using the Ohio State Infrared Imager qnd Spectrometer (OSIRIS). Our observations confirm the recent finding that several bright M stars in the Galactic center are variable. Our photometry also establishes the near-infrared variability of the M1-2 supergiant, IRS 7.

Cone search capability for table J/ApJ/470/864/table1 (Galactic center observed photometry)