R Sct very deep minimum

[Robin Leadbeater]

The pulsating variable R Sct has just gone through a very deep (record breaking?) minimum. At previous deep minima it has shown an unusual spectrum
http://cdsads.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/nph- ... ..95..762H
The star is quite bright ~mag 8 so it could be a good opportunity for someone to take a high resolution Eshel spectrum

Cheers
Robin

[Robin Leadbeater]

Athough it is well past minimum now, I had a quick look at R Sct last night (LHIRES 1200) at a similar resolution and wavelength range as in the paper referenced above which covers a previous deep minimum in 1981. (fig 3)
The absorption spectrum is similar but apart from H alpha which shows weak emission, the other 1981 emission lines are in absorption in my spectrum. See attached spectrum and overlay with the 1981 minimum spectrum

Cheers
Robin