Abstract. Results of photoelectric observations of TT Ari during the 1985-1994 interval are presented. Observations were carried out at the Rozhen and Belogradchik observatories as part of our programme for the study of anti-dwarf novae. The long-term light curve in the standard UBV system is constructed and peculiarities of the long-term behaviour of the star in this time interval are discussed. 21 moments of maxima and 14 moments of minima are added to the list of known maxima and minima of 3.2-hour modulations. The period of 3.2-hour modulations during the 1987/1988, 1989/1990 and 1990/1991 seasons is determined. In our 29 observing runs we searched for 20-min quasi-periodic variations, which were detected in 25 of them. Our results show that in 1989, the 20-min modulation mean period reached a local maximum of 19.45 min and declined afterwards. The mean brightness variability analysis during the aforementioned seasons confirmed the reliability of the 3. d 8 period suspected by Semeniuk et al. (1987).
Radial-velocity variations of the Hα emission measured on the steep wings of the Hα line, prewhitened for the long-time changes, vary periodically with a period of 218. d 025 ±0. d 022, confirming the suspected binary nature of the bright Be star BU Tau, a member of the Pleiades cluster. The orbit seems to have a high eccentricity over 0.7, but we also briefly discuss the possibility that the true orbit is circular and that the eccentricity is spurious owing to the phase-dependent effects of the circumstellar matter. The projected angular separation of the spectroscopic orbit is large enough to allow the detection of the binary with large optical interferometers, provided the magnitude difference primary − secondary is not too large. Since our data cover the onset of a new shell phase up to development of a metallic shell spectrum, we also briefly discuss the recent long-term changes. We confirm the formation of a new envelope, coexisting with the previous one, at the onset of the new shell phase. We find that the full width at half maximum of the Hα profile has been decreasing with time for both envelopes. In this connection, we briefly discuss Hirata's hypothesis of precessing gaseous disk and possible alternative scenarios of the observed long-term changes.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.