The K giant stars from the LAMOST survey data I: identification,
  metallicity, and distance
  We present a support vector machine classifier to identify the K giant stars
from the LAMOST survey directly using their spectral line features. The
completeness of the identification is about 75% for tests based on LAMOST
stellar parameters. The contamination in the identified K giant sample is lower
than 2.5%. Applying the classification method to about 2 million LAMOST spectra
observed during the pilot survey and the first year survey, we select 298,036 K
giant candidates. The metallicities of the sample are also estimated with
uncertainty of $0.13\sim0.29$\,dex based on the equivalent widths of Mg$_{\rm
b}$ and iron lines. A Bayesian method is then developed to estimate the
posterior probability of the distance for the K giant stars, based on the
estimated metallicity and 2MASS photometry. The synthetic isochrone-based
distance estimates have been calibrated using 7 globular clusters with a wide
range of metallicities. The uncertainty of the estimated distance modulus at
$K=11$\,mag, which is the median brightness of the K giant sample, is about
0.6\,mag, corresponding to $\sim30$% in distance. As a scientific verification
case, the trailing arm of the Sagittarius stream is clearly identified with the
selected K giant sample. Moreover, at about 80\,kpc from the Sun, we use our K
giant stars to confirm a detection of stream members near the apo-center of the
trailing tail. These rediscoveries of the features of the Sagittarius stream
illustrate the potential of the LAMOST survey for detecting substructures in
the halo of the Milky Way.
