[vsnet-newvar 695] Re: [vsnet-id 318] 'Q' numbers of 'The Astronomer'

[Brian Skiff <bas@lowell.edu>]

     It looks to me as though there's a problem with assumed responsibilities
here.  If the announcement of claims for priority for finding new variables
matters as much as it seems, then folks should agree that a single person
or institution should serve as a "central bureau" as is done now for transient
events already under the purview of the IAU Central Bureau for novae,
supernovae, and solar-system objects.  Since the variables are not moving,
it seems reasonable (to me anyway) that they be assigned names of a fixed
form, probably like J123456+1234.5, i.e. the J2000 position to 1s of time
precision in RA and 0'.1 in Dec.  The designated entity shall be the only
one assigning these names, and no other names should be promulgated except
to communicate with the "central bureau".  When real data with at least
partial lightcurves are published, then these "official" names can be used
without ambiguity, with a citation to the relevant URL from the 'newvar'
mailing-list, where new official preliminary name-lists will be sent on
some regular basis.  Elaborate from there....

\Brian

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