The formation and evolution of binary star systems still remain key questions in modern astronomy .
Wide binary pairs ( separations > 10 ^ { 3 } AU ) are particularly intriguing because their low binding energies make it difficult for the stars to stay gravitationally bound over extended timescales , and thus probe the dynamics of binary formation and dissolution .
Our previous SLoWPoKES I & II catalogs provided the largest and most complete sample of wide binary pairs of low masses .
Here we present an extension of these catalogs to a broad range of stellar masses : the Gaia Assorted Mass Binaries Long Excluded from SloWPoKES ( GAMBLES ) , comprising 8,660 statistically significant wide pairs that we make available in a living online database .
Within this catalog we identify a subset of 543 long-lived ( dissipation timescale > 1.5 Gyr ) candidate binary pairs , of assorted mass , with typical separations between 10 ^ { 3 } -10 ^ { 5.5 } AU ( 0.002 - 1.5 pc ) , using the published distances and proper motions from the Tycho-Gaia Astrometric Solution and Sloan Digital Sky Survey photometry .
Each pair has at most a false positive probability of 0.05 ; the total expectation is 2.44 false binaries in our sample .
Among these , we find 22 systems with 3 components , 1 system with 4 components , and 15 pairs consisting of at least 1 possible red giant .
We find the largest long-lived binary separation to be nearly 3.2 pc ; even so , > 76 \% of GAMBLES long-lived binaries have large binding energies and dissipation lifetimes longer than 1.5 Gyr .
Finally , we find the distribution of binary separations is clearly bimodal , corroborating the finding from SloWPoKES and suggesting multiple pathways for the formation and dissipation of the widest binaries in the Galaxy .