Optical activity of 4U 0115+63
ATel #1427; V. Larionov (Astronomical Institute of St. Petersburg University, Russia), A. Arkharov (Pulkovo Observatory, Russia)
on 17 Mar 2008; 04:16 UT
Credential Certification: V.Larionov (vlar@astro.spbu.ru)
Subjects: Infra-Red, Optical, X-ray, Request for Observations, Neutron Star, Transient
Recent high-energy observations (ATEL#1426) report the onset of a new X-ray outburst of the binary X-ray pulsar 4U 0115+63. Our optical and NIR monitoring results show remarkable similarity of its current behavior to that observed during previous major outburst of 2004 September (see Reig, Larionov, Negueruela et al., 2007, A&A, 462, 1081), in the sense that the X-ray outburst occurs when optical level is close to its maximum (currently R~13.6), following several months of enhanced activity. That kind of behavior supports the model of decretion disc model, as suggested by Reig et al. A part of our recent R-band light curve can be uploaded from ftp://observ.astro.spbu.ru/uploads/vlar/4u0115/4u0115.eps
Observations in all energy ranges are highly desirable.
