New Mira Variables from the MACHO Galactic Bulge Fields, part II

TL;DR

This paper reports the discovery of 525 new Mira variables in the Galactic Bulge, compares them with OGLE data, and provides detailed lightcurve data, significantly expanding the known sample of these pulsating stars.

Contribution

The study introduces a large new sample of Mira variables in the Galactic Bulge and compares their properties with existing OGLE data, enhancing the understanding of these stars.

Findings

525 new Mira variables identified in the Galactic Bulge.

Good agreement between MACHO and OGLE periods for matched stars.

Expanded dataset with detailed lightcurves and statistical analysis.

Abstract

We present a new sample of 525 Mira variables in the direction of the Galactic Bulge, expanding on previous samples of 69 and 500 objects, respectively, and thereby concluding our search for new Mira variables in the MACHO Galactic Bulge fields. 364 Miras of the present sample are reported as variable stars for the first time. We have cross-correlated our sample with the sample of Mira stars from the OGLE-III Catalog of Long-Period Variables (LPVs) in the Galactic Bulge and found 146 matches; MACHO and OGLE periods are in very good overall agreement. We present summary data for all stars of the present sample and give a statistical overview, comparing the properties of the MACHO and OGLE samples and enlarging on the analyses in our previous paper. Lightcurves, folded lightcurves and further details are available via the AAVSO International Variable Star Index (http://www.aavso.org/vsx/). Data of the complete sample of Mira variables from the MACHO Galactic Bulge fields, as presented in our papers (Bernhard, 2011; Huemmerich and Bernhard, 2012 and the present paper), can be found in the appendix.