The FUor Candidate V582 Aurigae: First Photometric and Spectroscopic Observations

One of the most attractive events in the pre-main sequence evolution is the FU Orionis (FUor) outburst. Because only a small number of FUor stars have been detected to date, photometric and spectral studies of every new object are of great interest. Recently, a new FUor candidate was discovered by Anton Khruslov - V582 Aur. To confirm the FUors nature of this object we started regular photometric observations with the telescopes of the National Astronomical Observatory Rozhen (Bulgaria). A high-resolution spectrum of V582 Aur was obtained with the 1.93 m telescope in Haute-Provence Observatory (France).Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, to appear in Bulgarian Astronomical Journa

Long-term multicolor photometry of the young stellar objects FHO 26, FHO 27, FHO 28, FHO 29 and V1929 Cygni

Results from long-term multicolor optical photometric observations of the pre-main sequence stars FHO 26, FHO 27, FHO 28, FHO 29 and V1929 Cyg collected during the period from June 1997 to December 2014 are presented. The objects are located in the dense molecular cloud L935, named "Gulf of Mexico", in the field between the North America and Pelican nebulae. All stars from our study exhibit strong photometric variability in all optical passbands. Using our BVRI observations and data published by other authors, we tried to define the reasons for the observed brightness variations. The presented paper is a part of our long-term photometric study of the young stellar objects in the region of "Gulf of Mexico".Comment: 28 pages, 13 figures, 6 tables, accepted for publication in Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia (PASA

Short-term optical variability of high-redshift QSO's

This paper presents results of a search for short-term variability in the optical band of selected high-luminosity, high-redshift radio-quiet quasars. Each quasar has been monitored typically for 2 - 4 hours with a time resolution of 2 - 5 minutes and a photometric accuracy of about 0.01 - 0.02 mag. Due to the significant redshift (z>2), the covered wavelength range falls into the UV region (typically 1500 - 2500A). We found no statistical evidence for any continuum variations larger than 0.01 - 0.02 for any of the monitored objects. Our results suggest that the presence of a short-term variability in radio-quiet quasars is unlikely even in the UV region, contrary to reports by other authors. This conclusion holds true at least for high-luminosity (large black hole mass and accretion rate?) objects. The results are consistent with the idea that significant short-term (less than 1 hour) variations in AGN, where observed, should be attributed primarily to processes in a relativistic jet.Comment: 7 pages, accepted for publication in MNRA

The large amplitude outburst of the young star HBC 722 in NGC 7000/IC 5070, a new FU Orionis candidate

We report the discovery of a large amplitude outburst from the young star HBC 722 (LkHA 188 G4) located in the region of NGC 7000/IC 5070. On the basis of photometric and spectroscopic observations, we argue that this outburst is of the FU Orionis type. We gathered photometric and spectroscopic observations of the object both in the pre-outburst state and during a phase of increase in its brightness. The photometric BVRI data (Johnson-Cousins system) that we present were collected from April 2009 to September 2010. To facilitate transformation from instrumental measurements to the standard system, fifteen comparison stars in the field of HBC 722 were calibrated in the BVRI bands. Optical spectra of HBC 722 were obtained with the 1.3-m telescope of Skinakas Observatory (Crete, Greece) and the 0.6-m telescope of Schiaparelli Observatory in Varese (Italy). The pre-outburst photometric and spectroscopic observations of HBC 722 show both low amplitude photometric variations and an emission-line spectrum typical of T Tau stars. The observed outburst started before May 2010 and reached its maximum brightness in September 2010, with a recorded Delta V~4.7 mag. amplitude. Simultaneously with the increase in brightness the color indices changed significantly and the star became appreciably bluer. The light curve of HBC 722 during the period of rise in brightness is similar to the light curves of the classical FUors - FU Ori and V1057 Cyg. The spectral observations during the time of increase in brightness showed significant changes in both the profiles and intensity of the spectral lines. Only H alpha remained in emission, while the H beta, Na I 5890/5896, Mg I triplet 5174, and Ba II 5854/6497 lines were in strong absorption.Comment: 4 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in A&