• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.109.1-109.1
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• 2012

In the past few years, two-planet circumbinary systems (e.g., HW Vir, NN Ser, DP Leo and HU Aqr) have been detected around short-period eclipsing binaries using ground-based telescopes. The existence of these planets has been inferred by interpreting the O-C variations of the mid-eclipse times. We have tested the orbital stability of these systems and propose to use Light Travel Time Effect (LITE) to detect such circumbinary planets from the ground. We generated synthetically the LITE signal of a two-planet circumbinary system with the aim to apply an analytic LITE model to recover the underlying synthetic system. To mimic a degree of realism inherent to ground-based observations, we added to the synthetic LITE data white noise with a Gaussian distribution and sampled the synthetic LITE signal randomly. We successfully recovered the original system demonstrating that two-planet circumbinary systems can be detected using ground-based telescopes, provided the timing measurements of the mid-eclipses are sufficiently accurate and the observing baseline is long enough to ensure a sufficient coverage of all involved periods. We used HU Aqr as a test system and applied our model to its proposed planetary bodies considering near-circular orbits. We present the results of our calculations and discuss the LITE-detectability of a HU Aqr-like system.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.311-318
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• 2006

High-precision photometric observations were performed in BVI bandpasses using Am robotic telescope at Mt. Lemmon Observatory for two binary stars, which are reclassified as W UMa-type systems from ROTSE(Robotic Optical Transient Search Experiment) follow-up observations and show peculiar light variations. In order to analyze W UMa-type eclipsing binaries systematically, the light curve analysis script using 2005 version of Wilson-Devinney binary code is constructed. The orbital inclinations of GSC2S84-1731 and GSC2576-0319 are $43.^{\circ}5\;and\;57.^{\circ}6$ from light-curve analysis, respectively. Spot model is applied to explain the asymmetric light curve for GSC2S84-1731 and the spot parameters are derived.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.319-326
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• 2006

We present light curves of a short period binary system BL Eridani. The light curves were observed with VRI filters by a 50cm wide field robotic telescope at Siding Spring Observatory (SSO), equipped with a 2K CCD camera, which was developed by Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute (KASI), and Yonsei University Observatory(YUO). The photometric observations were made on 6 nights by automatic operation mode and remote observation mode at SSO and KASI in Korea, respectively. We obtained new VRI CCD light curves and new 5 times of minima, and analyzed the light corves with the Wilson & Deviney (1971) binary 2005 version and derived the new photometric solutions. The mass ratio q=0.48 in this study shows different value with earlier investigators. According to the model analysis, it is considered that the BL Eri system is currently undergoing contact stage of the two binary components, rather than near-contact stage.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.101-112
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• 2008

Systematic CCD observations of times of minimum lights for eclipsing binaries has been carried out from 2002 to 2007 at Campus Station of Chungbuk National University Observatory which is located in Cheongju city, Korea. As a by-product of our observations, photometric data for stars in CCD images taken from 2005 to 2007 were used to determine 1st order atmospheric extinction coefficient (hereafter AEC) and seasonal and yearly variations of the AECs were studied. Total nights used for determination of AECs were 57 days in 2005, 51 days in 2006, and 63 days in 2007. As a result the annual mean value of the AECs per air mass is calculated as $0.^m34{\pm}0.^m18$ for 2005, $0.^m38{\pm}0.^m19$ for 2006, and $0.^m45{\pm}0.^m20$ for 2007. These values show that the AECs and their standard deviations are two and four times, respectively, larger than those of normal observatories which are not located near large cities. Annual comparison between concentration of atmospheric fine dust and coefficient of atmospheric extinction show strong correlation between two quantities of which time variations show similar patterns. The AECs for the east sky show larger than those for the west sky. It can be easily understood by the reasonable possibility that air pollutants remain more in the east sky than in the west because the east area of Cheongju city has been more developed than the west one. In conclusion the atmospheric extinction of the night sky of Cheongju city has an annual trend of increase of $0.^m06\;airrnass^{-1}\; year^{-1}$ implying that it may take only about 13 years for Cheongju city to have 2 times brighter night sky than the present one. Our study highlights that variations of AEC can be used as an important indicator of air pollution to monitor night skies.