I/242 Pulkovo Photographic Vertical Circle (PVC96) (Gontcharov+ 1998)
The catalogue PVC96
Gontcharov A.G., Bagildinsky B.K., Kornilov E.V.,
Polojentsev D.D., Shkutov V.D.
<Izv. Glav. Astron. Obs., 213, 48 (1998)>
=1998IzPul.213...48G 1998IzPul.213...48G
ADC_Keywords: Positional data ; Meridian observations
Abstract:
The catalogue PVC96 is published. This is the first version of
catalogue of declinations of FK5 (I/149) fundamental stars derived
from the observations made with the Zverev photographic vertical
circle (PVC) of the Pulkovo observatory in 1987-1994. The given
comparison of the PVC96 with the HIP (I/196) catalogue obtained by
the Hipparcos space project demonstrates that mean error of
declination in the PVC96 is 0.1arcsec which corresponds to estimation
made a priori.
Description:
The Pulkovo photographic vertical circle catalogue, the first version,
PVC96, gives accurate declinations of 760 stars from the FK5 (I/149)
and FK5 (I/175) Extension north of declination -15deg.
In 1987-1995 the Photographic vertical circle of the Pulkovo
observatory (PVC) carried out programme of observations of
declinations of Mars, Jupiter and FK5 stars. Stars with declination
higher than 45 deg were observed at both culminations.
8250 observations of 1345 stars and 49 ones of 2 planets have been
treated and used to establish an instrumental coordinate frame conform
to the DE200. The first version of the catalogue, PVC96, has been
constructed on the basis of 6821 observations of 760 stars with at
least 4 observations at upper culmination. For the stars with
declination higher than 70 deg the observations at both culminations
were used in the catalogue, for the rest of the stars only
observations at upper culmination were used. The mean observational
epoch is 1991.5. The internal mean error of one observation at zenith
is 0.14 arcsec. The declinations of the stars are obtained with mean
precision of 0.07 arcsec.
The classical method of observations with vertical circle was used.
Each meridian transit observation includes two exposures of 40
seconds each separated by a reversal of the entire instrument taking
about one minute. During the period of the observations the PVC had a
photographic-photoelectric micrometer including a photographic camera
at the eyepiece end of the tube, and a special visual-photoelectric
measuring machine. Readings of two divided vertical circles of glass
were registered by photoelectric microscopes. A tilt of the instrument
with respect to the vertical line was measured by two bubble levels.
All the measuring devices of the PVC were calibrated and investigated
externally (i.e., independently of observations). The flexure of the
tube investigated at various zenith distances proves to be a function
of zenith distance and temperature.
The meteorological equipment was calibrated and the temperature,
pressure and humidity were read to take refraction into account with a
precision of 0.02 arcsec using the Pulkovo Tables, 5th edition. Since
narrow red filters were used in the observations, the chromatic
refraction was taken from the Pulkovo Tables also.
All systematic errors (i.e., those depending on zenith distance) have
been evaluated and taken into account with a precision at the level
of 0.05 arcsec. Therefore the asymptotic accuracy of the observed
declination after many observations has been evaluated as a function
of zenith distance. Combining this asymptotic accuracy with formal
precision of the obtained declination we evaluated the accuracy for
every catalogue declination.
The result of the stellar observations is an independent instrumental
coordinate frame. Using the planetary observations this instrumental
frame is rotated to conform to the DE200 ephemerides which are
generally accepted as the best current conventional dynamical frame.
It is done by solving for a correction to the equator zero-point
derived from the observations of the planets made in the instrumental
frame. The corrections to equator are:
"instrumental frame minus FK5" (from stellar observations)
= +0.014 ±0.02 arcsec,
"instrumental frame minus DE200" (from planetary observations)
= -0.046 ±0.03 arcsec,
"catalogue PVC96 minus FK5" = +0.060 ±0.04 arcsec.
File Summary:
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FileName Lrecl Records Explanations
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ReadMe 80 . This file
pvc96.dat 52 760 The catalog
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See also:
I/149 : Fifth Fundamental Catalogue (FK5) Part I (Fricke+, 1988)
I/175 : Fifth Fundamental Catalogue (FK5) - Extension (Fricke+ 1991)
I/196 : Hipparcos Input Catalogue, Version 2 (Turon+ 1993)
Byte-by-byte Description of file: pvc96.dat
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Bytes Format Units Label Explanations
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1- 4 I4 --- FK5 Number from FK5 (I/149)
6- 11 I6 --- HIC Number from Hipparcos Input Catalogue I/196
13- 14 I2 --- Nobs Number of observations
16- 20 F5.2 yr Ep-1900 Mean epoch of observation (years), offset 1900
22- 31 F10.6 deg DEdeg Declination (degrees), equinox=J2000,
epoch of observation
33- 35 I3 10mas PVC96-FK5 Difference between observed and FK5
declination (hundredths of arcseconds),
equinox=J2000, epoch of observation
37- 38 I2 10mas fpDEdeg Formal precision of declination
(hundredths of arcseconds)
40- 41 I2 10mas e_DEdeg Evaluated accuracy of declination
(hundredths of arcseconds)
43- 52 F10.7 h RAhour Right ascension from FK5 (hours),
equinox=J2000, equator=J2000
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Acknowledgements:
We dedicate the catalogue to the memory of Dr. Bronislav K.
Bagildinsky. During more than 30 years he provided important guidance
in all works with the Pulkovo photographic vertical circle. On
September 26th of this year Dr. Bagildinsky died. He was 67. His
scientific contributions, enthusiasm for astrometry, and, most of all,
his friendship will be exceedingly missed.
The authors thank all astronomers from the Pulkovo observatory who
took part in this research: Dr. V.A.Naumov, E.N.Bystrov, M.S.Chubey,
Dr. A.V.Devyatkin, Dr. I.S.Guseva, O.M.Mikhailova, Dr.
N.R.Persiyaninova, Z.A.Razvorotneva, B.N.Smirnov, E.N.Titova and
others, with special thanks to Dr. Anna Andronova for discussion of
software and mathematical methods.
G.A.G. is grateful to the American Astronomical Society for financial
support.
The calculations are performed with two computers provided by the
Russian foundation of fundamental investigations (grant # 93-02-3056).
(End) George Gontcharov [Pulkovo Obs], Francois Ochsenbein [CDS] 1996-Oct-07