Affiliation
American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO)
Thu, 03/26/2020 - 11:16
wow, what's with everyone's best mate SS Cyg at the moment - is it having a standstill? I seem to recall another SS, SS Aur, went through a similar period a few years back.
Yes, it's been staying around 11.5 between spikes instead of the usual 12.1 or so. Does this mean that the accretion disc is emitting more light before it crashes on to the dwarf?
The light curve of the last 6 months or so is nothing like the usual behavior of this star. As Patrick notes, SS Cyg has not been under mag 12 for a long time, but the minimum level seems to hover around mag 11, a magnitude which in previous years would have signalled that SS Cyg would almost certainly go into outburst. Other phenomena of note is that the late Nov '19 "outburst" was very modest, to say the least, whereas the dec '19 - jan '20 one was unusually prolonged.
There is always somethng happening at SS Cyg. A truly fascinating star to observe!
Good luck and clear skies!
What with SS Cyg and now SU UMa teasing... interesting times!