Meaburn Spectrograph joins SWIFT to monitor nova
1300 BST 20 June 2008
Nova V2491 Cyg spectra on successive dates taken by Meaburn Spectrograph (click for bigger)
The first science programmes are now underway using the Meaburn low resolution spectrograph on the Liverpool Telescope. In one programme, the LT is now taking regular spectra of the recent eruption of nova V2491 Cyg in conjunction with X-ray monitoring from the SWIFT satellite.
It has been suggested that this object belongs to the rare and important class of recurrent novae and the optical spectroscopy tends to confirm this hypothesis. More details of the instrument are available here, and some example spectra of V2491 Cyg in the region around Halpha can be seen here.
