From jop at astro.columbia.edu  Sat Nov  6 09:46:31 1999
From: jop at astro.columbia.edu (Joe Patterson)
Date: Sat, 6 Nov 1999 07:46:31 -0700 (MST)
Subject: (cba:news) V709 Cas, and a new dwarf nova
Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.4.10.9911060741470.22663-100000@keats.cbastro.org>


Dear CBAers,                                              Nov. 6, 1999.

     Time to ring down the curtain on V709 Cas = RX0028+593.  A few
scattered pulse timings during the rest of the season would be useful, but
the dense campaign is over.  We have enough, from Bob and the two Daves.

     I think the attached note re KUV 23012+1702 merits a big response.
Let's track this puppy during and after its outburst!

     And continued coverage of IP Peg and U Gem, yes, absolutely yes.


            Joe



---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Fri, 05 Nov 1999 22:30:22 +0100 (MET)
From: Jochen Pietz <Jochen.Pietz at t-online.de>
To: vsnet-obs at kusastro.kyoto-u.ac.jp
Subject: (cba:news) [vsnet-obs 24521] KUV 23012+1702

KUV 23012+1702  1999-10-31.88  <15.5C
KUV 23012+1702  1999-11-03.89   15.7C
KUV 23012+1702  1999-11-04.79   15.4C   

CCD photometry obtained between 1999-11-04.78 and 04.95 revealed
humps with an amplitude of 0.35mag. The period is about 0.082days.

Regards,
Jochen Pietz


------------------------------------------------------------

BELGIAN ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY V.V.S. -  Working Group Variable Stars
Cataclysmic Variables Circular No.159              1997, December 6
Ed.: T. Vanmunster, Walhostraat 1A, 3401 Landen, BELGIUM
     Internet: tvanmuns at innet.be                  TEL. 32-11-831504
     CVC Web Page : http://www.astro.columbia.edu/~cba/cvc
===================================================================

KUV 23012+1702 = a new UG in Peg [15.8B - 18.2B ?]
================================================

S. Antipin, Sternberg Astronomical Institute, Moscow, communicates :
"I would like to inform you about a new UG-type star in Peg. This
star was firstly discovered by M. Kondo, T. Noguchi and H. Maehara
(Tokyo Ann 20, No.2, p. 130, 1984) as a new blue variable object
KUV 23012+1702. No classification is given in their work.
I independently discovered and investigated this variable on Moscow
plates. The new variable definitely is a dwarf nova. Two kinds of
outbursts were found : bright ones have mag 15.8B in maximum and have
a duration of more than 8 days; faint ones have mag 16.5B in maximum
and a duration less than 4 (or 5) days. (All magnitudes are based on    
the USNO A1.0 catalogue B-band scale).
The cycle is (very approximately) 27 days. It would be interesting
to know a brightness in minimum. In the USNO A1.0 catalogue, the
object is shown at mag 18.2B, but it's unsure if this really shows
the star at minimum light.
Coordinates of this object are R.A.= 23h03m41.8s, decl.= +17d17'55"
(J2000.0). This is approx. 2 degrees north of Alfa Peg. The variable
is the NE star of a pair.
A CCD spectrum of KUV 23012+1702 was obtained by G. Wegner and
J. Dupuis (AJ 106, No.1, p.390, 1993). According to their work the
object is sdBe, U-B=-0.7 mag."

Evidently, this object should be monitored in close detail for
future outbursts. It presumably is a new UGSU-type dwarf nova.
Further details on this object will shortly be published by
Sergei Antipin in an IBVS issue.         

[...]


From jk at cbastro.org  Wed Nov 17 16:25:50 1999
From: jk at cbastro.org (Jonathan Kemp)
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 14:25:50 -0700 (MST)
Subject: (cba:news) new stars for november (fwd)
Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.4.10.9911171425290.30658-100000@keats.cbastro.org>


---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 09:13:19 -0700 (MST)
From: Joe Patterson <jop at astro.columbia.edu>
To: cba-news at cbastro.org
Subject: (cba:news) new stars for november



Dear CBAers,

La Nina continues to roar away in the Southwest U.S., and the star-
projects just keep falling.  We're finished not only with V709 Cas, but
also V452 Cas and KUV2301+27.  Got very satisfactory periods for 'em all.

So let's press our luck, with some altogether new stars!  Here are three
which have had no significant time-series photometry done, and which
exhibit peculiarities much deserving of study.  All probably CVs, though
even that is not established in the absence of photometric coverage.

Cet 7   0109-08   V=15
HV And  0040+43     16
Tau 2   0400+06     15.5

All catalogoued with precise positions in DWS97 (April 1997 PASP).

We also want to stalk IP Peg and U Gem for the rest of their observing
seasons, to follow the changes in the eclipse through the outburst cycle.
This is good for occasional, not relentless, coverage.

Then there are the DQ Her stars, for which we want scattered pulse
timings.  These are mainly AO Psc, FO Aqr, V405 Aur, and BG CMi.  Watch
that clock for accuracy!

Send me what ya get.  The students have a break in 3 days, which means I
have a little one too.


         joe


From jop at astro.columbia.edu  Thu Nov 18 10:37:48 1999
From: jop at astro.columbia.edu (Joe Patterson)
Date: Thu, 18 Nov 1999 08:37:48 -0700 (MST)
Subject: (cba:news) [vsnet-alert 3718] TmzV36 very rare outburst (fwd)
Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.4.10.9911180827270.3050-100000@keats.cbastro.org>



Dear CBAers,

Patrick's discovery of Takamizawa V36 in outburst seems to me to
warrant time-series coverage.  There's no such reported coverage yet,
and the prospects for periodic humps are very decent.  Something to
console us for the "background rate" of Leonids last night!

Patrick's reported astrometric position is 9 16 50.7 +28 49 42.  Kind of a
morning object, not the most convenient but quite far from the Moon.
Pretty close to the alleged (certainly indeterminate last night!) Leonid
radiant.  So let's move on from the missing Leonids and behold the power
of the CBA.

    joe



---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 18 Nov 1999 14:27:12 +0100 (CET)
From: Patrick Schmeer <extpasc at rz.uni-sb.de>
To: vsnet-alert at kusastro.kyoto-u.ac.jp
Cc: GHA07243 at nifty.ne.jp, Patrick Schmeer <extpasc at rz.uni-sb.de>
Subject: (cba:news) [vsnet-alert 3718] TmzV36 very rare outburst

CCD magnitudes obtained by P. Schmeer, Bischmisheim, Germany:

TmzV36  (UG:)
TmzV36  991113.536  180:C  Scp
TmzV36  991114.535  179C   Scp
TmzV36  991117.528  147C   Scp
Sequence:   USNO-A2.0 (red magnitudes)
Instrument: IRO (0.5-m RCT + AP-8)

This likely cataclysmic variable is undergoing its second ever
recorded outburst. The only previously known brightening occurred
in 1994 November (vsnet-obs 10504, see below).
Robert Fried took several images of TmzV36 last night at my request.
The (blue) object is visible at mag 14.9 on his R-band image taken
on Nov. 18.456 UT (same sequence as above).

Data from USNO-A2.0: 091650.693 +284943.07 (2000.0) 17.4 18.8

Time-resolved photometry (and spectroscopy) during the current outburst
is very urgently required.

Regards,
Patrick

P.S.:
Excerpt from vsnet-obs 10504:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
[vsnet-obs 10504] New Takamizawa variables (TmzV34-V36)

  Kesao Takamizawa (Nagano, Japan) reports the following discoveries of
variable stars (TmzV34-V36)

  TmzV36 = USNO1125.05932438 091650.670 +284942.54 17.4 19.7
           091650.7 +284942 (2000.0, Takamizawa's semiaccurate measurement)

         Takamizawa reports that the star is visible on Real-Sky CD-ROM
         at magnitude ~18.

object         YYMMDD(UT)   mag  code
TmzV36         940306.519  <153p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         940428.535  <150p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         940512.560  <145p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         941102.718  <145p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         941129.809  138p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         941130.732  137p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         950222.480  <153p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         951020.747  <153p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         960113.550  <153p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         960309.472  <153p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         970929.794  <153p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         971029.751  <153p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         980102.610  <153p  Tmz.VSOLJ
TmzV36         980318.560  <153p  Tmz.VSOLJ
---------------------------------------------------------------------------


From jk at cbastro.org  Fri Nov 19 12:48:23 1999
From: jk at cbastro.org (Jonathan Kemp)
Date: Fri, 19 Nov 1999 10:48:23 -0700 (MST)
Subject: (cba:news) changes, and data archiving and processing
Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.4.10.9911181442060.20001-100000@keats.cbastro.org>

Dear CBAers,

Just a few notes on recent changes to CBA and its web site.

 - Data archiving is now active!  Please send data files to 
   cba-data at cbastro.org where they will be archived and passed along to
   Joe and myself.  Messages pertaining to data sets, quality, accuracy,
   etc., should also be sent to this address.  You will get a return
   receipt verifying that your mail has been received.  Please feel free
   to include as much info as you want in the subject line about the data
   set and feel free to include additional info in the body.  We'll
   eventually  post a page about CBA data taking and submission.  As
   usual, we are fond of the two-column format (truncated JD vs. delta
   mag), but we can deal with a variety of data formats.

 - As you've probably figured out, we've moved to www.cbastro.org.

 - CBA news dissemination should happen through cba-news at cbastro.org.
   If you wish to contact all CBAers, please use this address.

 - General information queries to CBAs Oracle and New York should be sent
   to cba-info at cbastro.org.

Joe and myself have been a bit busy of late, as you've probably noticed.
The inaugural Universe Semester has had its share of excitements and
headaches, but we'll return to our slightly more communicative (and
research-oriented) selves in about a month.  A little bit more time will
then be devoted to CBA stuff by each of us, and to the web site which has
grown a bit stale of late (my apologies!), which is now starting to change
a bit.  I hope to add and change things more frequently and we anticipate
that it will become a bit more dynamic.  The spring semester will be
comparatively less demanding and we hope to exert more energies to areas in
which we've been a bit sluggish of late...

Oh, and here's a summary of those addresses:

  www.cbastro.org - CBA web site
  cba-data at cbastro.org - submission of data and data-related messages
  cba-info at cbastro.org - queries to CBAs Oracle and New York
  cba-news at cbastro.org - communications with all CBAers

Jonathan
CBA Oracle


From jop at astro.columbia.edu  Mon Nov 22 14:47:48 1999
From: jop at astro.columbia.edu (Joe Patterson)
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 1999 12:47:48 -0700 (MST)
Subject: (cba:news) The Fish Has Rested
Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.4.10.9911221229040.5672-100000@keats.cbastro.org>


Dear CBAers,

Well with my little break I finally could finish the analysis on AO Psc.
The results are tres interesting...

Very large pulsation signals at 858.7 and 805.2 s.  The usual signatures
of DQ Her stars.

Smooth orbital modulation at 0.1496 d.  Also fairly standard.

Strong superhump at 0.1661 d.  I agonized greatly about this because it
was very close to 6.000 c/d, and reached maximum suspiciously close to
meridian passage over Tucson.  But Lasse's and Stan's data from greatly
different longitudes established its reality.

Weak pulse at w-Wsh, the low-frequency "apsidal sideband" of the rotation
(X-ray) frequency.

What a horn of plenty it is!

Cap'n Bob's coverage of Cet 7 and Tmz V36 was very disappointing - I think
these stars should be flunked out after that first audition.  On the other
hand, Tau 2 was very interesting and would be an excellent target as soon
as the Moon gets outa the way.

For these moonlit nights, consider FY Per - bright and all-night. It
appears to show occasional 90 min waves, although its orbital period is
about 6.2 hours.  A very good target for small telescopes around the
world!

I also hope that you folks keep the faith on IP Peg and U Gem - we want to
keep following the changes in eclipse waveform and timing as the stars
subside from their recent outbursts.

Just saw the news about the Leonid hitting the Moon.  The solar system
sure seems like a more dangerous place than when I was first learning
about it!

    joe



From jop at astro.columbia.edu  Tue Nov 30 10:16:30 1999
From: jop at astro.columbia.edu (Joe Patterson)
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 08:16:30 -0700 (MST)
Subject: (cba:news) The Queen is Dead, Long Live the Queen
Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.4.10.9911300742450.2227-100000@keats.cbastro.org>


Dear CBAers,

And what a good week it was.  I finished analyzing the very dense 1999
data on V709 Cas, as well as AO Psc.  Kudos to Cap'n Bob, Daves East and
West, Lasse and Tonny for most of this work.  Allen Shafter and Stan
Walker contributed some critical data too.

V709 Cas has also shown up with a superhump - negative variety, displaced
by 4.3% from Porb.  A wispy thing, just 0.05 mag full amplitude.  This is
just barely above the detection limit for P~5.3 hr and 300 hours of data
(in the presence of 0.2 mag flickering).  But you can take it to the
proverbial bank. So: positive for AO, negative for V709.
Equal-opportunity superhumps.

Did the 313 s pulse timing study too, over the four years since Skillman's
discovery.  Very stable, with a little dP/dt of 10**-11.  Just the way
I like 'em.

Cassiopeia is still pretty well placed for us borealites.  So pay no
attention to my previous dismissal, and bring the star back for an encore.
Long, long runs will allow us to track this new delight for another month
or so - with the Moon getting outa the way, now's the time to spring into
action.

Let's *cancel* HV And and FY Per; they were very disappointing.  It's a
struggle; only the interesting survive.  Tau 2, U Gem, V405 Aur, and IP
Peg are hanging in there.

Having found all these wonderful slow wiggles in two DQ Her stars, we're
certainly going to make a similar big effort in V405 Aur.  I just
wanted to log a few more weeks on V709 Cas first.

Nuthin' like a school vacation!


           joe