The Photometric Period and Variability of the Cataclysmic Variable V849 Herculis (PG 1633+115)

TL;DR

This study presents time-resolved photometry of V849 Her, measuring its orbital period, analyzing its variability, and suggesting it is a nova-like variable with quasi-periodic low states similar to VY Sculptoris stars.

Contribution

The paper provides the first precise measurement of V849 Her's orbital period and characterizes its low-state variability over multiple years.

Findings

Measured orbital period of 0.1414 days

Identified quasi-periodic low states with a cycle of ~12.5 days

Classified V849 Her as a nova-like variable

Abstract

We report time-resolved photometry of the cataclysmic variable V849 Her, and measure a period of 0.1414 \pm 0.0030 days (3.394 \pm 0.072 hours). We also present photometry taken over several weeks in 2010 and 2011, as well as light curves from 1995 to 2011 by the American Association of Variable Star Observers. The spectra, absolute magnitude derived from infrared magnitudes, and variability all suggest that V849 Her is a nova-like variable. The shallow (0.5-magnitude) low states we observe resemble the erratic low states of the VY Sculptoris stars, although they may recur quasi-periodically over an average cycle of 12.462 \pm 0.074 days.