Location
Comstock Memorial Union, MSUM
Document Type
Poster
Event Website
https://www.mnstate.edu/sac/
Start Date
15-4-2025 12:00 AM
End Date
15-4-2025 12:00 AM
Publication Date
4-15-2025
Description
The general direction of this research was to study eclipsing binary star systems. To start, stars to observe had to be chosen. There were several targeting tools that contained lists of objects and their corresponding information. This is sufficient for most types of variable stars; however, most tools do not consider whether an eclipse was observable on a particular night or at our location; they simply list where the stars are visible. An open-source program was created in Python to calculate when an observer can observe an eclipse. Predictions were generated for the eclipsing binary stars listed in the Otero+ spreadsheet using period and eclipse duration pulled from the Variable Star Index (VSX). The spreadsheet and index are sourced from the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO). The program uses the observer location and observer-specified constraints on elevation and sky darkness to generate a list of upcoming full or partial transits observable from their location. Several observations of object V2480 Cyg were taken with the Paul P. Feder Observatory using the times that were calculated from the program. The observed eclipse time was 1.73 hours past the prediction. This could be a result of either the period or the epoch reported in VSX being incorrect, or both. Other objects were observed to confirm that the program works correctly. Fortunately, there was Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) data from NASA that was used to compare the period times for V2480 Cyg. The periods between TESS and VSX agree only to the first three decimal places. Further study of this object is planned to discern the source of this discrepancy.
A Tool to Predict Binary Eclipses Observable from Your Location
Comstock Memorial Union, MSUM
The general direction of this research was to study eclipsing binary star systems. To start, stars to observe had to be chosen. There were several targeting tools that contained lists of objects and their corresponding information. This is sufficient for most types of variable stars; however, most tools do not consider whether an eclipse was observable on a particular night or at our location; they simply list where the stars are visible. An open-source program was created in Python to calculate when an observer can observe an eclipse. Predictions were generated for the eclipsing binary stars listed in the Otero+ spreadsheet using period and eclipse duration pulled from the Variable Star Index (VSX). The spreadsheet and index are sourced from the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO). The program uses the observer location and observer-specified constraints on elevation and sky darkness to generate a list of upcoming full or partial transits observable from their location. Several observations of object V2480 Cyg were taken with the Paul P. Feder Observatory using the times that were calculated from the program. The observed eclipse time was 1.73 hours past the prediction. This could be a result of either the period or the epoch reported in VSX being incorrect, or both. Other objects were observed to confirm that the program works correctly. Fortunately, there was Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) data from NASA that was used to compare the period times for V2480 Cyg. The periods between TESS and VSX agree only to the first three decimal places. Further study of this object is planned to discern the source of this discrepancy.
https://red.mnstate.edu/sac/2025/cshe/8