Though strictly an armchair and garden astronomer these days, in the 80's I was allowed to use real telescopes...
Areas of work and publications
Novae
"PW Vulpeculae and RS Ophiuchi", JS Albinson, MF Bode, A Evans & MJ Goldsmith; International Astronomical Union Circular No 4091; 1986.
BACKGROUND:
The slow nova PW Vulpeculae was the first of two galactic classical novae that appeared in the constellation Vulpecula in 1984. M. Wakuda of Japan discovered this nova at photovisual magnitude 9.2 on 1984 July 27.7 UT while it was still brightening. The nova reached a visual maximum of 6.3 mag. on 1984 August 4.1 UT. It then began a gradual decline with strong oscillations of one to two mags (Robb & Scarfe 1995). A full four years after its optical maximum, PW Vul had faded to visual magnitude 15.5.
On 2006 February 12th, the recurrent nova RS Ophiuchi erupted for the first time since 1985. On both occasions, the event triggered off an intensive multi-wavelength observational campaign, from the radio to x-rays.
BACKGROUND:
The slow nova PW Vulpeculae was the first of two galactic classical novae that appeared in the constellation Vulpecula in 1984. M. Wakuda of Japan discovered this nova at photovisual magnitude 9.2 on 1984 July 27.7 UT while it was still brightening. The nova reached a visual maximum of 6.3 mag. on 1984 August 4.1 UT. It then began a gradual decline with strong oscillations of one to two mags (Robb & Scarfe 1995). A full four years after its optical maximum, PW Vul had faded to visual magnitude 15.5.
On 2006 February 12th, the recurrent nova RS Ophiuchi erupted for the first time since 1985. On both occasions, the event triggered off an intensive multi-wavelength observational campaign, from the radio to x-rays.
RCB variables
"Deep Minima in R Coronae Borealis Stars"; MJ Goldsmith & A Evans; Irish Astronomical Journal; 17; No 3; March 1986.
"A Study of R Coronae Borealis and RV Tauri Stars", MJ Goldsmith, Ph D Thesis, 1987.
"The Effective Temperatures of RCB Stars" MJ Goldsmith, A Evans, JS Albinson & MF Bode; Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society; 245; pp 119‑129; 1990.
BACKGROUND The R Coronae Borealis (RCB) stars are rare hydrogen-deficient, carbon-rich, supergiants, best known for their spectacular declines in brightness at irregular intervals. Efforts to discover more RCB stars have more than doubled the number known in the last few years and they appear to be members of an old, bulge population. Two evolutionary scenarios have been suggested for producing an RCB star, a double degenerate merger of two white dwarfs, or a final helium shell flash in a planetary nebula central star. The evidence pointing toward one or the other is somewhat contradictory, but the discovery that RCB stars have large amounts of 18O has tilted the scales towards the merger scenario. If the RCB stars are the product of white dwarf mergers, this would be a very exciting result since RCB stars would then be low-mass analogs of type Ia supernovae. The predicted number of RCB stars in the Galaxy is consistent with the predicted number of He/CO WD mergers. But, so far, only about 65 of the predicted 5000 RCB stars in the Galaxy have been discovered. The mystery has yet to be solved.
"A Study of R Coronae Borealis and RV Tauri Stars", MJ Goldsmith, Ph D Thesis, 1987.
"The Effective Temperatures of RCB Stars" MJ Goldsmith, A Evans, JS Albinson & MF Bode; Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society; 245; pp 119‑129; 1990.
BACKGROUND The R Coronae Borealis (RCB) stars are rare hydrogen-deficient, carbon-rich, supergiants, best known for their spectacular declines in brightness at irregular intervals. Efforts to discover more RCB stars have more than doubled the number known in the last few years and they appear to be members of an old, bulge population. Two evolutionary scenarios have been suggested for producing an RCB star, a double degenerate merger of two white dwarfs, or a final helium shell flash in a planetary nebula central star. The evidence pointing toward one or the other is somewhat contradictory, but the discovery that RCB stars have large amounts of 18O has tilted the scales towards the merger scenario. If the RCB stars are the product of white dwarf mergers, this would be a very exciting result since RCB stars would then be low-mass analogs of type Ia supernovae. The predicted number of RCB stars in the Galaxy is consistent with the predicted number of He/CO WD mergers. But, so far, only about 65 of the predicted 5000 RCB stars in the Galaxy have been discovered. The mystery has yet to be solved.
RV Tauri stars
"Optical and Infrared Observations of RV Tauri Stars", MJ Goldsmith, A Evans, JS Albinson & MF Bode; Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society; 1987.
The full paper is here
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1987MNRAS.227..143G
"Optical and Infrared Observations of Southern RV Tauri Stars", MJ Goldsmith, A Evans, JS Albinson & MF Bode; 1987; IAU Symposium No. 122.
Title:
Optical/infrared observations of RV Tauri stars. Authors:
Goldsmith, M. J.; Evans, A.; Albinson, J. S.; Bode, M. F. Publication:
Circumstellar matter, p. 537 - 540 Publication Date:
00/1987
"Simultaneous Optical and Infrared Observations of RV Tauri Stars", MJ Goldsmith, A Evans, JS Albinson & MF Bode; in "Stellar Pulsations: A Memorial to JP Cox"; AN Cox & W Sparks (eds); 1987.
“Multiwavelength observations of RV Tauri stars. I - AC Herculis”; Shenton, M.; Albinson, J. S.; Barrett, P.; Davies, J. K.; Evans, A.; Goldsmith, M. J.; Hutchinson, M. G.; Maddison, R. C.; Weight, A.; Astronomy and Astrophysics, vol. 262, no. 1, p. 138-152; August 1992
“Multiwavelength observations of RV Tauri stars. 4: SX Centauri”; Shenton, M.; Evans, A.; Albinson, J. S.; Barrett, P.; Davies, J. K.; Goldsmith, M. J.; Hutchinson, M. G.; Laney, D.; Maddison, R. C.; Astronomy and Astrophysics, vol. 292, no. 1, p. 102-114 ; December 1994
BACKGROUND: RV Tauri stars are giants which are probably between a Delta Cepheid and a Mira variable. They pulsate semi-regularly with a main and a minor maximum. Many of them are surrounded by a dust cloud. This kind of stars is poorly explored and the known facts are rare.
The full paper is here
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1987MNRAS.227..143G
"Optical and Infrared Observations of Southern RV Tauri Stars", MJ Goldsmith, A Evans, JS Albinson & MF Bode; 1987; IAU Symposium No. 122.
Title:
Optical/infrared observations of RV Tauri stars. Authors:
Goldsmith, M. J.; Evans, A.; Albinson, J. S.; Bode, M. F. Publication:
Circumstellar matter, p. 537 - 540 Publication Date:
00/1987
"Simultaneous Optical and Infrared Observations of RV Tauri Stars", MJ Goldsmith, A Evans, JS Albinson & MF Bode; in "Stellar Pulsations: A Memorial to JP Cox"; AN Cox & W Sparks (eds); 1987.
“Multiwavelength observations of RV Tauri stars. I - AC Herculis”; Shenton, M.; Albinson, J. S.; Barrett, P.; Davies, J. K.; Evans, A.; Goldsmith, M. J.; Hutchinson, M. G.; Maddison, R. C.; Weight, A.; Astronomy and Astrophysics, vol. 262, no. 1, p. 138-152; August 1992
“Multiwavelength observations of RV Tauri stars. 4: SX Centauri”; Shenton, M.; Evans, A.; Albinson, J. S.; Barrett, P.; Davies, J. K.; Goldsmith, M. J.; Hutchinson, M. G.; Laney, D.; Maddison, R. C.; Astronomy and Astrophysics, vol. 292, no. 1, p. 102-114 ; December 1994
BACKGROUND: RV Tauri stars are giants which are probably between a Delta Cepheid and a Mira variable. They pulsate semi-regularly with a main and a minor maximum. Many of them are surrounded by a dust cloud. This kind of stars is poorly explored and the known facts are rare.
Cosmic dust
Thermionic effect in circumstellar dust” MJ Goldsmith, A Evans, Conference on Dust in the Universe, ME Bailey and DA Williams (eds.), p. 547, 1988.
BACKGROUND: Circumstellar dust is cosmic dust around a star. It can be in the
form of a spherical shell or a disk, and dust can be responsible for significant extinction. It is usually the source of an infrared excess for stars that have it. Cosmic dust is usually similar either to fine grains of silicate (olivine is the closest terrestrial equivalent) or to soot.
BACKGROUND: Circumstellar dust is cosmic dust around a star. It can be in the
form of a spherical shell or a disk, and dust can be responsible for significant extinction. It is usually the source of an infrared excess for stars that have it. Cosmic dust is usually similar either to fine grains of silicate (olivine is the closest terrestrial equivalent) or to soot.
Iron stars
“The reddening and variability of XX Ophiuchi” ; Evans, A.; Albinson, J. S.; Barrett, P.; Davies, J. K.; Goldsmith, M. J.; Hutchinson, M. G.; Maddison, R. C.; Astronomy and Astrophysics , vol. 267, no. 1, p. 161-167; January 1993
BACKGROUND
Only two so-called Iron stars exist: XX Ophiuchi and AS 325. XX Oph was first observed in 1924 by Merrill. He noted strong, doubly ionized iron emission lines were present in the spectra, thus the name iron star. It is now thought that stars each consist of two separate stars, possibly in a binary. The current model has each Iron Star composed of a Be star and a late type (supergiant) companion separated by 1-2 thousand AU. The dust around XX Oph may contain "buckyballs" (C60 molecules)
BACKGROUND
Only two so-called Iron stars exist: XX Ophiuchi and AS 325. XX Oph was first observed in 1924 by Merrill. He noted strong, doubly ionized iron emission lines were present in the spectra, thus the name iron star. It is now thought that stars each consist of two separate stars, possibly in a binary. The current model has each Iron Star composed of a Be star and a late type (supergiant) companion separated by 1-2 thousand AU. The dust around XX Oph may contain "buckyballs" (C60 molecules)
Pre-main sequence stars
“Photometry and polarimetry of pre-main sequence stars”; Hutchinson, M. G.;
Albinson, J. S.; Barrett, P.; Davies, J. K.; Evans, A.; Goldsmith, M. J.;
Maddison, R. C. ; Astronomy and Astrophysics vol. 285, p.
883-896 (1994) ; May 1994
BACKGROUND Pre-main sequence (PMS) stars are young stellar objects that have not yet initiated core hydrogen burning. These stars are fueled by gravitational contraction and deuterium fusion. For PMS stars to be visible, they must have shed most of their birthing cocoon material, although much interstellar material and local nebulosity may still surround these objects. PMS stars often still have accretion disks, winds, and outflowing jets. They can be rapid rotators with strong magnetic fields.
Albinson, J. S.; Barrett, P.; Davies, J. K.; Evans, A.; Goldsmith, M. J.;
Maddison, R. C. ; Astronomy and Astrophysics vol. 285, p.
883-896 (1994) ; May 1994
BACKGROUND Pre-main sequence (PMS) stars are young stellar objects that have not yet initiated core hydrogen burning. These stars are fueled by gravitational contraction and deuterium fusion. For PMS stars to be visible, they must have shed most of their birthing cocoon material, although much interstellar material and local nebulosity may still surround these objects. PMS stars often still have accretion disks, winds, and outflowing jets. They can be rapid rotators with strong magnetic fields.