Richards, Butterworth and Blackford (2017), Note on the Period of V883 SCO

A paper by Neil Butterworth, Mark Blackford and Tom Richards has been published in the Open European Journal on Variable stars (OEJV). Download here.

They show that the GCVS period and type of V883 Sco is seriously wrong; and the paper explains how the discoverers (Shrohmeier & Knigge) could have got it so wrong. A bit of a warning here to be sceptical about GCVS data!

Abstract: Photometric data of the eclipsing binary V883 Sco obtained at Townsville Observatory since 2015 shows it is an eccentric system of type EA and has a period of 4.34119(4) d; not an EB/KE with period 1.29484 d as stated in the General Catalogue of Variable Stars and other sources. We also derive a new zero epoch from our primary minimum times of HJD 2457579.114(3). Our period is confirmed and rendered more precise by an analysis of INTEGRAL-OMC and ASAS3 data. An O-C analysis of earlier non-CCD minimum times (which led to the incorrect GCVS light elements) shows that our light elements can be applied with very good precision to them.