Variable Stars

Variable stars are stars which exhibit changes in brightness or magnitude.  Variable stars, or "variables' come in several flavors.  One of the variable stars that I follow is the Cataclysmic Variable [CV].  This is a white dwarf star which is being closely orbited by a larger, red dwarf star.    As the white dwarf steals matter from the red dwarf, a large amount of energy, in the form of light, is emitted.   The total orbit time of the red dwarf may be from a few dozen to several hundred minutes.

Pick one of the Variable Stars from the list on the left to see the light curves that the author has been generating for these objects.

Other good references links for CV stars are:

The American Association for Variable Star Observers [AAVSO]  http://www.aavso.org

VSnet in Japan      http://www.kusastro.kyoto-u.ac.jp/vsnet/DNe/wzsge01.html

Gianluca Masi, Ceccano (FR) Italy     http://www.eurolink.it/comets/wzsge.htm

The Beginner's Guide to Cataclysmic Variables
http://www.mssl.ucl.ac.uk/www_astro/gal/cv_beginners.html

Catalogue of Cataclysmic Binaries, Low-Mass X-Ray Binaries and Related Objects
http://www.mpa-garching.mpg.de/Binary/ukolb/ed6.html