The first recorded outburst of this UG star since September 1990
(9.1 mag, Schmeer) was detected by the Director on October 16th at magnitude
12.7. Confirmation was obtained by Tonny Vanmunster (CBA, Belgium) shortly
afterwards, and independent confirmations were received from W. Worraker
& M. Gill.
DO Dra peaked at magnitude 10.7 on October 18th, and by the 22nd had faded to
14.8 mag - the whole outburst lasting around 6 days. This agrees well with
historical outbursts, which have all proved to be of short duration.
Photometry by CBA observer Tonny Vanmunster has revealed large amplitude
(>0.2) variations, which it is claimed are periodic.
This is the first outburst where accurate photometry has been obtained, and
the results are eagerly awaited.
The two CCD images show the field of DO Dra at minimum and in outburst. Images by Vanmunster on 1996 Jly 24.0715 UT, and Oct. 18.8993 UT using 25cm f6.3 SCT & ST-7 unfiltered CCD.