Deep census of variable stars in a VLT/VIMOS field in Carina

TL;DR

This study conducted a deep survey of variable stars in a Carina field using VLT/VIMOS data, discovering 339 new variables and providing a comprehensive catalog that informs future variability research.

Contribution

It presents the first extensive catalog of variable stars in this Carina field, including various types, based on four nights of VLT observations, with most variables being newly identified.

Findings

348 variables detected among 50,897 stars

Most variables are new discoveries, with only 9 known transits

Catalog includes eclipsing binaries, pulsators, and irregular variables

Abstract

We have searched for variable stars in deep V-band images of a field towards the Galactic plane in Carina. The images were taken with VIMOS instrument at ESO VLT during 4 contiguous nights in April 2005. We detected 348 variables among 50897 stars in the magnitude range between V=15.4 and V=24.5 mag. Upon detection, we classified the variables by direct eye inspection of their light curves. All variable objects but 9 OGLE transits in the field are new discoveries. We provide a complete catalog of all variables which includes eclipsing/ellipsoidal binaries, miscellaneous pulsators (mostly delta Scuti-type variables), stars with flares and other (irregular and likely long-period) variables. Only two of the stars in our sample are known to host planets. Our result give some implications for future large variability surveys.