The BeppoSAX WFC x-ray source catalogue

Aims. We present the catalogue of X- ray sources detected by the two Wide Field Cameras ( WFCs) in complete observations on board BeppoSAX during its 6 years of operational lifetime, between April 1996 and April 2002. Methods. The BeppoSAX WFCs were coded mask instruments sensitive in the 2 - 28 keV energy band with a 40 x 40 square degree fields of view, pointing in opposite directions and perpendicularly to the BeppoSAX Narrow Field Instruments ( NFI). The WFCs were usually operated simultaneously to NFI observations, each lasting up to several days. WFCs observed thus the entire sky several times with a typical sensitivity of 2 to 10 mCrab. A systematic analysis of all WFC observations in the BeppoSAX archive has been carried out using the latest post- mission release of the WFC analysis software and calibrations. Results. The catalogue includes 253 distinct sources, obtained from a total sample of 8283 WFC detections. We describe the basic statistical properties of the sample and present a six- year history of two celestial calibration X- ray sources.