COMMISSION 27 OF THE I. A. U.
           INFORMATION BULLETIN ON VARIABLE STARS
                       Number 2581

                                          Konkoly Observatory
                                          Budapest
                                          10 September 1984

                                          HU ISSN 0374-0676


                       NEW FLARE STAR

The serendipitous discovery of a new flare star on an ultraviolet plate
taken with the 1.2m UK Schmidt Telescope at Siding Spring Observatory,
Australia, is reported.

A new guiding facility on the 1.2m UK Schmidt Telescope allows the telescope
to track a fast moving comet during a long exposure. The telescope is moved
at a pre-programmed rate of offset from the guide star, calculated from the
known direction and speed of the comet across the sky. Consequently, all
star images appear as trails with identical micro irregularities in their
signatures. Any non-trailed or unusual image can be easily identified.

The flare was noticed on a 90 minute U plate using the previously described
technique on Comet Crommelin. The flare star was identified visually on the
SERC J Southern Sky Survey. A flare of about 1.5 mag. above a quiescent B(J)
magnitude of approximately 16.5 +- 0.5 occurred at 8h36m30s+-30s LST on
April 4th, 1984. It lasted for approximately 8 minutes by which time it had
returned to within 0.3 mag of J = 16.5. The colour from the Palomar sky
survey is consistent with that of a dM star.


                                [FIGURE 1]

alpha = 5h42m33.3s
delta = -20d05'02.5"
         (1950.0)                         

                                              A.R. GOOD
                                    Royal Observatory, Blackford Hill
                                      Edinburgh, EH9 3HJ, Scotland