AX Per returning to lower state after outburst
ATel #17725; Marchev, D. ; Borisov, B. ; Atanasova-Sartliiska, T. ; Yordanova, G. ; Pavlova, N. (Konstantin Preslavsky University of Shumen); Marchev, V. (Institute of Astronomy and National Astronomical Observatory, Bulgaria)
on 19 Mar 2026; 14:01 UT
Credential Certification: Vladislav Marchev (vlad.marchev@gmail.com)
Subjects: Optical, Cataclysmic Variable, Star, Transient, Variables
In this telegram we are presenting multicolor photometric observations of AX Per from AO Shumen. According to S. N. Shore et al. (ATel #17630) there was an outburst in mid January increasing the star's brightness in V band with half magnitude. Due to this interesting event, we did photometric observations and followed the development of the brightness in these three nights 9.03.2026, 13.03.2026 and 17.03.2026.
The observations were done with 60cm telescope of the Astronomical Observatory (AO) Shumen (Marchev, D. et al., Publ. Astron. Obs. Belgrade No. 107, 113 â 116, 2025) in Jonson photometrical system BVRI. The same standard stars were used like in A. Henden and U. Munari A&A 458, 339-340 (2006).
Our observations show steady decrease of brightness during the 9-day period of observation. The average magnitude and their uncertainties are given in Table 1 below.
The outburst is mostly present in shorter wavelengths seen from the greater brightness in B and V filters. This is also observed in spectral data (ATel #17658) showing stronger emission for hydrogen and helium lines. The steady decrease in brightness is indicating the star is returning to the original state prior to the outburst. Magnitude of the star at 17.03 is very close to the original state and following the trend that our observational data shows, we can expect the star will be back to its brightness levels prior to the outburst in 10 days. This shows that it takes twice as much time for the star to return to its original state then it took for the outburst to reach its maximum.
The authors acknowledge the support of grant RD-08-105/2026 from the Science Fund of Shumen University.
Table 1.
