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Variable Star in the Flame Nebula, Steve Lantz

Variable Star in the Flame Nebula

Revision title: The star ASASSN-VJ054124.25-014934.9 and its light curve.

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Variable Star in the Flame Nebula, Steve Lantz

Variable Star in the Flame Nebula

Revision title: The star ASASSN-VJ054124.25-014934.9 and its light curve.

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I've been working for some time on understanding how to use Muniwin software to do multiple star photometry of stars in digital images.  I will say that without the help of Star-Watcher johny I never would have gotten to where I can actually accomplish anything.  I owe him greatly for his knowledge and his patience!  So thank you, johny!!!  I recently published an image of the Flame and Horsehead nebulae.  I ran this image through Muniwin and the software identified two possible variable stars, one of which I actually identified on my own, star ASAS J054354-0243.6, using coordinates from a plate solved version of the image and internet searching of star catalogs.  The second really looked like a variable star from its light curve but I could find no variable star at its coordinates  Johny, however, did find it in the ASASSN variable star data base, star ASASSN-VJ054124.25-014934.9.  Both stars are eclipsing binary systems in which two stars orbit one another and the planes of their orbits lie in our line of sight.  When  one star passes in front of the other, the total light output decreases because one star's light is blocked.  The second star's data are presented here in the final image.  Interestingly, it lies (as indicated in the final image) within the flame nebula, where star formation is active.  It is classified as an EA system, which is typified by the variable star Algol.  Such systems generally consist of a hotter, more massive star in an orbit with a cooler, less massive star.  The cooler star is generally more expanded and its atmosphere extends to the edge of where its gravitational pull can keep its matter from spilling over onto the more massive star; the more massive star does not extend to such a limit (the limits are the edges of what are called the stars' Roche lobes).  The total variation in brightness in EA systems typically is around 1 magnitude and their periods can range from about one-tenth of a day to almost 10,000 years.  ASASSN-VJ054124.25-014934.9 has a magnitude change of 11.47 to 11.99 and has a period of 2.88 days.  The length of my image set was only 45 minutes, which is generally not enough to catch variable stars changing appreciably.  But EA variables, as illustrated in the second posted image, have very steep changes in brightness over a small portion of a cycle.  I think I got lucky with this catch because this star (and, actually, the other one too) must have been on the steep part of its light curve during eclipse and produced a rapid enough change in brightness to be detectable.  Fun stuff!

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Title: The star ASASSN-VJ054124.25-014934.9 and its light curve.

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Variable Star in the Flame Nebula, Steve Lantz