[vsnet-chat 272] Re: New variable stars, etc.

[Tonny Vanmunster <tvanmuns@innet.be>]

At 20:01 28/04/97 +1200, Stan Walker wrote:
>Just last year there were plans here in NZ to promote an international VS
>publication with a variety of review and other articles - much the same as
>those mentioned by Tonny. Not just for CVs, but for Miras, SRs, Cepheids and
>the like. It needs to be truly international - not US dominated like so much
>of the astronomical publications, and be simple and appealing to a wide
>cross-section of observers. 
>
>I don't think that this would conflict with VSNet and it is attractive to
>the majority who don't use Internet, or who like to do their reading in bed
>or in front of the fire. 

It might be. But don't underestimate the effort such a publication would
require.
As usual, it will need to be managed by volunteers (mostly active amateurs),
who like to spend (I guess) some of their time doing real observing -outside-.
I therefore believe that Lasse Jensen's remark (also circulated on vsnet-chat)
has better potential : there are already a number of good publications on VS
for amateurs. Why not use these more intensively ? There is no problem for
amateurs
to publish an article in several of those magazines simultaneously. I
remember we
(= G. Poyner, P. Van Cauteren, L. Jensen and myself) did this once with a
basic article
about possible collaborations between amateurs and professionals (at an
epoch when
CCD's where just emerging in CV research). It was quite successful and copied in
several foreign magazines.

> we'd like to hear a little more about
>what some of the rest of the world is doing - for instance the Belgians and
>Japanese who seem to be more active then some groups.

I will pass your remarks to Eric Broens, our current president of the
Belgian VSS.
He might comment on this (or write some stuff for publication in some
magazines).

> Is Paul van Cauteren still in the field?

You might be pleased to hear he's still alive and kicking, and even doing VS
observing ;-)
But, he has very much specialized in one particular domain of VS research,
i.e. CCD
photometry of Delta Scuti stars. He's currently not observing other objects, and
is not making visual observations anymore.

Regards,
Tonny

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