Colleagues,
Last year (March 2015), we were contacted by a group of scientists to issue an alert for monitoring the classical T Tauri star RW Aur (https://www.aavso.org/aavso-alert-notice-514). The object had entered a faint state, appearing to be 3 mag fainter than its "normal" bright state. The theory for the faint state is that the RW Aur's accretion disk was disrupted by its companion, creating a stream of material around the object.
Today, almost two years after the begining of the event, an ATel was published with AAVSO data indicating that the object just exited the faint state (http://www.astronomerstelegram.org/?read=9428). We are looking forward to the outcome of the scientific study by the groups involved. In the meanwhile, I would like to thank all who have participated in the campaign and produced the visual and V light curves in/out of the faint state of the object, which are key for its understanding. Your data is what make the AAVSO the wonderful resource for professional astronomers, and help us understand the mysteries of the universe!
Best wishes - clear skies,
Stella.
Hi Stella,
Yes, I looked at it (3 am this morning, just before going to bed!) and it was back up to 11.3mv. But who knows what it's going to do next?