The Bright Star Monitor (BSM) telescopes have been taking images for six years, starting with the original BSM that was used to monitor the eclipse of epsilon Aurigae. All told, over 520,000 images have been taken of 3800 northern and southern targets, resulting in a total of 66 million datasets, where each dataset is a grouping of at least two filters for each star.
This latest release triples the number of observations in the Epoch Photometry Database (EPD). Three types of observations are present: survey fields (a set of about 2000 fields that are monitored on a sporatic basis); transient objects (where HQ decided to monitor specific targets like novae or campaign objects); and research targets (where specific observations were requested). All of these observations are now available to you as a member of the AAVSO.
You can read more about the database at
https://www.aavso.org/bright-star-monitor-epoch-photometry-database
and AAVSO members can query and download observations at the search page:
https://www.aavso.org/search-bright-star-monitor-epoch-photometry-database
Note that there is also a VStar plugin for the BSM EPD, so that you can examine the light curves of selected objects, or merge the data with other observations from the AID or other sources. However, the current VStar plugin only accesses Version 2 of the EPD. Version 3 will be available with the next release of VStar.
I would like to thank the many volunteers and donors that have contributed time, effort and funding for the Bright Star Monitor project. We always welcome new volunteers and donors!
These observations show that even small telescopes can make significant contributions to science. I'm looking forward to many more fruitful years of service from the Bright Star Monitor Network!
Arne