KIC 8462852: Potential repeat of the Kepler day 1540 dip in August 2017

TL;DR

This study reports a potential repeat of a mysterious dimming event in star KIC 8462852, suggesting a possible orbiting brown dwarf with rings, and proposes radial velocity observations to confirm its presence.

Contribution

It presents observational evidence of a repeat dip in KIC 8462852 and hypothesizes a brown dwarf with rings as the cause, proposing a method for detection.

Findings

Observed a dip similar to the Kepler event in August 2017

Proposed a brown dwarf with rings as the cause of the dip

Suggested radial velocity measurements to detect the object

Abstract

We report 33 V-band observations by the Hereford Arizona Observatory (HAO) of the enigmatic star KIC 8462852 during the two week period 3-17 August 2017. We find a striking resemblance of these observations to the Kepler day 1540 dip with HAO observations tracking the Kepler light curve (adjusted for egress symmetry). A possible explanation of this potential repeat transit is a brown dwarf and extensive ring system in a 1601-day eccentric orbit. We suggest this object may be detectable through radial velocity observations in October and November 2017, with an amplitude of ~ 1-2 kms-1.