October 24, 2012: Following on AAVSO Alert Notice 471 (Gaensicke, Patterson, and Henden, www.aavso.org/aavso-alert-notice-471) and AAVSO Special Notice #298 (www.aavso.org/aavso-special-notice-298), the HST COS (Cosmic Origins Spectrograph) far ultraviolet observations of THE NEXT TARGET from the list, the WZ Sge-type cataclysmic variable
1RXS J023238.8-371812,
have been scheduled for 2012 November 1 22:52:28 UT through November 2 07:09:06 UT.
Extensive coverage in the 48 hours preceding the HST window is crucial, as the HST scheduling team will make a go/no-go decision in the 24 hours preceding the observations. They will need to know whether the system is in quiescence, as if it is too bright it will damage the instrumentation and the observations will be cancelled.
Positive observations, if at all possible, are preferred to fainter-thans so as to know the actual magnitude of the system. During quiescence 1RXS J023238.8-371812 is around magnitude V=18.8 (magnitude 11 in outburst).
Coordinates: R.A. 02 32 37.96 Dec. -37 17 54.9 (2000.0)
As instructed in Alert Notice 471, for CCD observers, simultaneous photometry [shortly before, during, and after the HST observations] would be ideal. B filter would be best for a light curve, although for the magnitude estimates, a V measurement would be best. An uninterrupted light curve would be better than cycling between filters. This target is likely too faint for positive visual observations, but if possible they are welcome, as are visual fainter-than observations fainter than magnitude 15.0.
Charts for 1RXS J023238.8-371812 may be created using VSP (www.aavso.org/vsp).
Please report observations promptly to the AAVSO International Database using the name 1RXS J023238.8-371812. If you see the target in outburst, please contact the AAVSO immediately and post a message to the Observations and Campaigns & Observations Reports forum (http://www.aavso.org/forum).
If you have been observing this star, thank you from us and from the astronomers - please continue! If you can add this star to your program through early November, please do, and thank you. Your observations will be crucial to the success of these observations and are greatly appreciated. Many thanks!
This AAVSO Special Notice was compiled by Elizabeth O. Waagen.
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