We present the first data release of the Fornax Deep Survey (FDS), an imaging survey using using the wide-field imager OmegaCAM mounted on the VST in the SDSS u, g, r, and i-bands covering the Fornax Galaxy Cluster and the infalling Fornax A Group. FDS is a joint project between NOVA (previously called FOCUS - PI: R. F. Peletier) and INAF (as part of VEGAS - PIs: M. Capaccioli and E. Iodice). With exposure times of about 9 hours over an area of ~28 square degrees, this survey is a legacy dataset for studies of members of the Fornax Galaxy Cluster and the infalling Fornax A Group down to a surface brightness limit of ~28 mag/arcsec^2 (1-sigma surface brightness over a 1 arcsecond^2 area) and opens a new parameter regime to investigate the role of the cluster environment in shaping the properties of its galaxy population. After the Virgo cluster,Fornax is the second nearest galaxy cluster to us, and with its different mass and evolutionary state, it provides a valuable comparison that makes it possible to understand the various evolutionary effects on galaxies and galaxy clusters. Details about the survey can be found in A. Venhola, R. F. Peletier, E. Laurikainen et al., 2018, A&A 620, 165. In this release, 181 Gb of (compressed) fits files reduced using the system are present. Catalogues with the complete sample of sources including dwarf galaxies part of the cluster, globular clusters, and background galaxies will be provided in forthcoming releases. The data products are available via the ESO Science Portal at https://archive.eso.org/scienceportal/home?publ_date=2020-08-26
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