ACDS V10.0 - Detailed Description of B/gcvs

ACDS V10.0 - Thu Jan 16 13:52:48 CET 2025

| # Detailed Description of B/gcvs : General Catalogue of Variable Stars (Samus+, 2007-2017) |

Note : this is the description file of the original catalog. This HTML page corresponds well to the original description, but some minor changes in the format may have been introduced in the FITS output files in order to allow for arithmetic operations on quantities such as coordinates and times. h:m:s and d:m:s units are normally converted into degrees, and YYYY-MM-DD into julian days.
Similarly, some slight changes may have been introduced in the units; the value given in the HTML files supersedes the value indicated in the ReadMe file for this catalogue.

    B/gcvs               General Catalogue of Variable Stars     (Samus+, 2007-2017)
    ================================================================================
    General catalogue of variable stars: Version GCVS 5.
        Samus N.N., Kazarovets E.V., Durlevich O.V., Kireeva N.N., Pastukhova E.N.
       <Astron. Zh. 94, 87 (2017)>
       =2017ARep...61...80S
       =2017AZh....94...87S
    ================================================================================
    ADC_Keywords: Stars, variable ; Combined data

    Abstract:
        Work aimed at compiling detailed catalogs of variable stars in the
        Galaxy, which has been carried out continuously by Moscow
        variable-star researchers since 1946 on behalf of the International
        Astronomical Union, has entered the stage of the publication of the
        5th, completely electronic edition of the General Catalogue of
        Variable Stars (GCVS). This paper describes the requirements for the
        contents of the 5th edition and the current state of the catalog in
        its new version, GCVS 5.1. The complete revision of information for
        variable stars in the constellation Carina and the compilation of the
        81st Name-list of Variable Stars are considered as examples of work on
        the 5th edition. The GCVS 5.1 is freely accessible on the Internet. We
        recommend the present paper as a unified reference to the 5th edition
        of the GCVS.

    Description:
        The GCVS is the only reference source on all known variable stars.
        This version contains the electronically-readable version as
        distributed by the Sternberg Astronomical Institute and Institute of
        Astronomy (Russian Acad.Sci.), Moscow. It includes the catalog of
        variable stars, updated and completed with the Name-Lists of Variables
        Stars Nos. 67-79, the NSV (New catalog of Suspected Variable stars)
        and Supplement to the NSV stars, and a catalog of extragalactic
        variables. A cross-index makes possible to find out identifications
        between the GCVS and the NSV catalogue.

        After the publication of Volume III of the 4th edition of the GCVS,
        the subsequent Name-lists with numbers from 67 to 77 contained only
        names of variable stars in the GCVS systems, together with their
        coordinates and variability types. We actually started compiling the
        5th edition of the GCVS ten years ago, with the 78th Name-list of
        Variable Stars, which provided (as did all subsequent Name-lists)
        complete GCVS information for each star (in addition to the
        variability types, ranges of brightness variations, epochs of
        brightness maxima or minima, periods, etc.). In all, the 78th-81st
        Name-lists contain more than 13300 variable stars. The complete
        revision of information on the coordinates of variable stars (see
        Introduction) was also a part of the transition to the 5th edition.

        The pesent improved electronic version of the GCVS5, combined with
        Name-Lists of Variable Stars Nos. 67-81 and NSV catalogue and
        supplement is also available from Sternberg Institute of Moscow
        University, or http://www.sai.msu.su/gcvs/gcvs/

        The GCVS 5.1 version contains data for 52011 individual variable
        objects discovered and named as variable stars by 2015 and located
        mainly in the Milky Way galaxy. Also, there are 158 objects that are
        non-existing, non-stellar, or stars erroneously named for the second
        time. The stars of the GCVS 5.1 are stars of the GCVS fourth edition
        plus Name-lists Nos. 67-81. The stars from the Name-lists
        Nos. 78-81 are presented in the complete GCVS format. Complete
        information for stars of the Name-lists Nos. 67-77 is so far
        provided in the first 18 constellations (Andromeda Cassiopeia). In
        these constellations, the GCVS information has been completely revised
        with active use of new publications as well as observations retrieved
        by the GCVS compilers by data mining and used to determine new
        variability types and new light elements whenever possible. We
        continue this work and will introduce new data for the next
        constellations as soon as they are ready. Upon recommendations of the
        IAU Commissions 27 and 42, in 2006, we developed a new experimental
        system of classification for variable stars.

        gcvs_cat.dat is the combined computer-readable version of the GCVS4.2
        Vols. I-III (Kholopov et al. 1985-1988) and Name-Lists of Variable
        Stars Nos. 67-81 published in the system introduced during the
        preparation of the 5th GCVS edition; the stars are arranged in the
        order of their names inside constellations. The total number of
        designated variable stars has now reached 52011. Errors detected in
        the printed Volumes I-III and in the Name-Lists were corrected; the
        file includes also improved positional information, light elements,
        classifications etc.
        For 51606 variable stars, our version provides new equatorial J2000.0
        coordinates (right ascensions to within 0.01s and declinations to
        within 0.1"), for 23934 stars with allowance for their proper motions.

        crossid.dat is the cross-identification tables of the General
        Catalogue of Variable Stars (GCVS) contain all GCVS (including
        variables from the Catalogue of Extragalactic Variable stars), NSV
        (New Catalogue of Suspected Variable stars) and Supplement to the NSV
        stars as well as stars from the name-lists of variable stars nos. 67 -
        81; it also makes it possible to find out identifications between the
        GCVS and the NSV catalogue.

        The final, Volume V (extragalactic variable stars) contains 10979
        variable stars in 35 stellar systems (including the Magellanic Clouds,
        the large galaxies in Andromeda and Triangulum, etc., see evs*.dat).

    File Summary:

           FileName      Lrecl  Records   Explanations

    ×                   80        .   This file
    × ReadMe            80        .   This file
    × gcvs_cat.dat     241    60894   GCVS catalog (GCVS 5.1, version Oct, 2020)
    × gcvs_rem.dat      80    17431   GCVS remarks
    × vartype.txt      121     1497   Description of GCVS Variability Types
    × constel.txt       72       32   Numerical Codes for Constellations and Letters
    × crossid.dat       64   221340   Cross-Identifications (Vol. V)
    × abbrev.txt        77      256   Abbreviations of catalogues used in crossid.dat
    × nsv_cat.dat      140    26018   NSV and supplement
    × nsv_rem.dat       80    11221   NSV and NSVS remarks
    × evs_cat.dat      160    10979   Extragalactic Variable Stars. Catalogue (Vol. V)
    × evs_rem.dat       80     1936   Extragalactic Variable Stars. Remarks
    × refs.dat          80    25470   References
    × ref_abbr.txt     264      318   Abbreviations used for references

    See also:
        B/sn   : Asiago Supernova Catalogue (Barbon et al., 1999-2008)
        II/256 : Sternberg Supernova Catalogue, 2004 version (Tsvetkov+, 2004)
        http://www.sai.msu.su/gcvs/gcvs/ : the GCVS Group Home Page
        ftp://zeus.sai.msu.ru/pub/groups/cluster/gcvs/gcvs/gcvs5 : GCVS5 Home Page

    Byte-by-byte Description of file:  gcvs_cat.dat

       Bytes Format Units    Label     Explanations

       1-  6  I06   ---      VarNum    Numeric designation, made from constellation
                                        and star names (codes in file "constel.txt")
           7  A1    ---      m_VarNum  Component identification (1)
       9- 18  A10   ---      GCVS      Variable star designation (2)
          19  A1    ---      n_GCVS    [*] indicates a remark in "gcvs_rem.dat" file
      21- 22  I2    h        RAh       ? Hours RA, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
      23- 24  I2    min      RAm       ? Minutes RA, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
      25- 29  F5.2  s        RAs       ? Seconds RA, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
          31  A1    ---      DE-       Sign Dec, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
      32- 33  I2    deg      DEd       ? Degrees Dec, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
      34- 35  I2    arcmin   DEm       ? Minutes Dec, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
      36- 39  F4.1  arcsec   DEs       ? Seconds Dec, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
          40  A1    ---      u_DEs     [:] position accuracy flag (G2)
      42- 51  A10   ---      VarType   Type of variability (see file "vartype.txt")
          53  A1    ---      l_magMax  [<>(] Limit or amplitude symbol on
                                        magMax (G3)
      54- 59  F6.3  mag      magMax    ? Magnitude at maximum brightness
          60  A1    ---      u_magMax  Uncertainty flag (:) on magMax
      63- 64  A2    ---      l_Min1    [< (]  Limit or amplitude symbol on Min1 (G3)
      65- 70  F6.3  mag      Min1      ? Minimum I magnitude or amplitude
          71  A1    ---      u_Min1    Uncertainty flag (:) on magMinI
      72- 73  A2    ---      n_Min1    Alternative photometric system for Min1 (G4)
          74  A1    ---      ---       [)] ) if Min1 is an amplitude
      76- 77  A2    ---      l_Min2    [< (] Limit or amplitude symbol on Min2 (G3)
      78- 83  F6.3  mag      Min2      ? Minimum II magnitude or amplitude
          84  A1    ---      u_Min2    Uncertainty flag (:) on magMinII
      85- 86  A2    ---      n_Min2    Alternative photometric system for Min2 (G4)
          87  A1    ---      ---       [)] ")" if Min2 is an amplitude
      89- 90  A2    ---      flt       The photometric system for magnitudes (G4)
      92-102  F11.5 d        Epoch     ? Epoch for maximum light, Julian days (G5)
         103  A1    ---      u_Epoch   [:+-] Uncertainty flag on Epoch (6)
     105-108  A4    ---      Year      Year of outburst for nova or supernova
         109  A1    ---      u_Year    [:] Quality flag on Year of outburst
         111  A1    ---      l_Period  [<>(] Code for upper or lower limits (7)
     112-127 F16.10 d        Period    ? Period of the variable star
         128  A1    ---      u_Period  [:] Uncertainty flag (:) on Period
     129-131  A3    ---      n_Period  [*/N) 2] Flag on Period (8)
     133-135  A3    %        M-m/D     Rising time (M-m) or
                                         duration of eclipse (D) (G6)
         136  A1    ---      u_M-m/D   Uncertainty flag (:) on M-m/D
         137  A1    ---      n_M-m/D   [*: ] Note for eclipsing variable (G6)
     139-155  A17   ---      SpType    Spectral type
     157-161  A5    ---      Ref1      Reference to a study of the star (G7)
     163-167  A5    ---      Ref2      Reference to a chart or photograph (G7)
     169-180  A12   ---      Exists    Cases of non-existence of the variable
                                        etc. (12)
     181-186  F6.3 arcsec/yr pmRA      ? Proper motion RA
     188-193  F6.3 arcsec/yr pmDE      ? Proper motion DE
     195-202  F8.3  yr       Ep-coor   ? Epoch of the coordinates (13)
         204  A1    ---      u_Ident   [?] Uncertainty flag (?) on
                                         identification (14)
     206-215  A10   ---      Ident     The source of astrometric data (15)
     216-225  A10   ---     VarTypeII  The new type of variability (16)
     227-237  A11   ---      VarName   Variable star designation (17)
         238  A1    ---      ---       ---
     239-241  A3    ---      ---       ---

    Note (1): designations of components of double/multiple stars:
       A,B; 1,2,3  ... (tau 1). Usually only one component of the binary
       is variable, but there exist two cases (CE Cas A,B; EQ Peg A,B) when
       both components are variable and enter the catalogue as separate lines.
    Note (2): traditional transliterations of greek letters
      are used. Lower- and upper-case latin letters must be distinguished
      (e.g. u Her and U Her).
    Note (6): the following codes are used (see also note on Epoch):
      ":" are used if the epoch is uncertain
      "+" epoch may be later than that reported
      "-" epoch may be earlier than that reported.
    Note (7): the following codes are used:
      ">" or"<" if period is a lower or upper limit, respectively
      "(": the period is the mean cycle time of a U Gem or recurrent nova
      (in this case, there is ")" in pos. 129).
    Note (8): the following codes are used:
      "*N" if the period may be a multiple of the quoted value
      "/N" if the period may be a fraction of the quoted value
      ")" - see the note on l_Period.
    Note (12): "=" in byte 169 appears in two cases.
      First, it is used if the variable is equivalent to another cataloged
      variable. In such case, after the "=" symbol, the alternative name
      of the variable follows, and all necessary information on the star is
      to be found under that alternative name.
      Second, the "=" symbol may be followed by the star's
        name in the  Catalogue of Extragalactic Variable stars, evs_cat.dat
    Note (13): Epoch of the given coordinates.  No epoch is provided when using the
     coordinates from the literature if the epoch was no specified in the
     publication and cold not be established;
    Note (14): The variable star's identification with the source catalog is
      uncertain.
    Note (15): A brief designation of the source of astrometric data.
      In several cases, the catalog designation is folowed
     by the symbol "+pm"; it implies that the position for a certain epoch
     was taken from the catalog and reduced to the epoch 2000.0 using
     information on the star's proper motion from a different source.
    Note (16): Upon recommendations of the IAU Commissions 27 and 42, in 2006,
      we developed a new experimental system of classification for variable stars.
    Note (17): The repetition of the GCVS name.
      Below, we give a list of the major catalogs and other data sources used,
      roghly in the order of our preference in identifying variable stars
      (see also the description of the catalogs provided for A.A. Volchkov's
      visualization code we used at www.simfov.ru).
      Hip - The Hipparcos Catalogue (ESA 1997).
      Tyc2 - The Tycho Catalogue (Hog et al. 2000).  In isolated instances
      where the star is absent in the second Tycho catalogue but is present in
      the first catalogue (ESA 1997), the source is indicated as Tyc1.
      UCAC2 - US Naval Observatory CCD Astrograph Catalog (Zacharias et al.,
      2004).
      PPM - The Positions and Proper Motions (Roser et al. 1991-1993).
      NPM - The Lick Northern Proper Motion Program (Klemola et al. 1987).
      AC - The Four-Million Star Catalog (see Gulyaev and Nesterov 1992).
      ACT - The ACT Reference Catalog (Urban et al. 1997).
      GSC 2.2 - The Guide Star Catalog, Version 2.2.01, 2001, Space Telescope
      Science, Institute and Osservatorio Astronomico di Torino.
      GSC - The Guide Star Catalog (Lasker et al. 1990).  The symbol "ns"
      accompanying a GSC reference implies that the entry is marked as a
      nonstellar object in the cited catalog.
      A2.0, B1.0 - A Catalog of Astrometric Standards (Monet et
      al., 1998) (there were rare cases when the star could be found only in the
      previous version of the catalogue, marked as A1.0); The Whole-Sky USNO-B1.0
      Catalog of 1 045 913 669 Sources (Monet et al., 2003).
      2MASS - The Two Micron All Sky Survey (Cutri et al., 2003).
      GCVS  - For some 10 stars, the coordinates were measured by the authors using
      Digitized Sky Survey images, plates from different collections, or other
      images.
      Lit. - The coordinates taken from current astronomical periodicals.

    Byte-by-byte Description of file:  gcvs_rem.dat

       Bytes Format Units   Label     Explanations

       1- 12  A12   ---     GCVS      Variable star designation
      14- 80  A67   ---     Text      Text of note

    Byte-by-byte Description of file:  crossid.dat

       Bytes Format Units   Label     Explanations

       1- 32  A32   ---     Name      Alternative name (catalog or list acronym is
                                         detailed in the file "abbrev.txt") (1)
          33  A1    ---     ---       [=]
      34- 59  A26   ---     VarName   Designation in GCVS or NSV or in Catalogue of
                                      Extragalactic Variable stars (1)
      60- 64  A5    ---     ---       ---

    Note (1): Designations of components of double/multiple stars:
       A,B,C ...; a,b,c ...; 1,2,3 ...;
       the symbols P = preceding, F = following, N = northern,
       S = southern may also appear.
       In the cases of ADS 03201 and ADS 03202 the symbols k1 and k2 mean kappa 1
       and kappa 2, respectively.

    Byte-by-byte Description of file:  nsv_cat.dat

       Bytes Format Units   Label     Explanations

       1-  5  I05   ---     NSV       NSV number (above 15000 for the Supplement)
           6  A1    ---     m_NSV     NSV letter suffix (1)
           7  A1    ---     u_NSV     [-] Dubitancy flag
                                       if a star's variability seems doubtful
                                       or erroneous to the catalog compilers
           8  A1    ---     n_NSV     [*] Notes in published catalog or
                                       remark in file "nsv.rem.dat" (2)
      10- 11  I2    h       RA1950h   ? Hours RA, equinox B1950.0 (G1)
      12- 13  I2    min     RA1950m   ? Minutes RA, equinox B1950.0 (G1)
      14- 17  F4.1  s       RA1950s   ? Seconds RA, equinox B1950.0 (G1)
          19  A1    ---     DE1950-   Sign Dec, equinox B1950.0 (G1)
      20- 21  I2    deg     DE1950d   ? Degrees Dec, equinox B1950.0 (G1)
      22- 23  I2    arcmin  DE1950m   ? Minutes Dec, equinox B1950.0 (G1)
      24- 25  I2    arcsec  DE1950s   ? Seconds Dec, equinox B1950.0 (G1)
          26  A1    ---    u_DE1950s  [:*. ] accuracy flags (G2)
          27  A1    ---     IDflag    [?:*I] Flag for doubtful identification
      28- 29  I2    h       RAh       ? Hours RA, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
      30- 31  I2    min     RAm       ? Minutes RA, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
      32- 35  F4.1  s       RAs       ? Seconds RA, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
          36  A1    ---     DE-       Sign Dec, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
      37- 38  I2    deg     DEd       ? Degrees Dec, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
      39- 40  I2    arcmin  DEm       ? Minutes Dec, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
      41- 42  I2    arcsec  DEs       ? Seconds Dec, equinox J2000.0 (G1)
          44  A1    ---     u_DEs     [:*|] accuracy flags (G2)
      46- 51  A6    ---     VarType   ? Type of variability (3)
          53  A1    ---     l_magMax  [><(] Limit or amplitude symbol on magMax (G3)
      54- 58  F5.2  mag     magMax    ? Magnitude at maximum brightness (4)
          59  A1    ---     u_magMax  [:] Uncertainty flag on magMax
      61- 62  A2    ---     l_magMin  [><( ] Limit symbol on magMin (G3)
      63- 68  F6.3  mag     magMin    ? Minimum magnitude or amplitude (4)
          69  A1    ---     n_magMin  The photometric system for amplitudes (G4)
      70- 71  A2    ---     u_magMin  [st: ] a light amplitude is reported for
                                       the minimum and it is given in steps
                                       Uncertainty flag (:) on magMin
          72  A1    ---     ---       [)] ")" if magMin is an amplitude
      74- 75  A2    ---     flt       The photometric system for magnitudes (G4)
      77- 81  A5    ---     Ref1      Reference to a study of the star (G7)
      83- 87  A5    ---     Ref2      Chart reference (G7)
      89-102  A14   ---     Desig     Designation in paper Ref1 (8)
     104-118  A15   ---     SpType    Spectral type (9)
     120-127  A8    ---     SpType2   Spectral type from HD catalog in brackets (9)
         128  A1    ---     f_NSV     [=|] '=' for named variables
     129-140  A12   ---     VarName   Designation in GCVS (G8)

    Note (1): The letter "A" is present for one star, NSV 10360A, which is a
       completely different object from NSV 10360.
    Note (2): see the document by Kukarkin et al. (New Catalogue of Suspected
       Variable Stars (Nauka, Moscow, 1982)
      There are several data fields that can contain asterisks.  These signify
      that more complete information will be found in the remarks to the
      published catalog.  The remarks are, unfortunately, not machine
      readable, but they do contain much supplemental information.  There, one
      will find information covering situations like, e.g.:
       1. The discoverer of the light variability is not the author of the
         paper cited in the variability reference, or is one of several authors
         of the paper cited.  In these cases, discoverers' names are given
         in original transcriptions of the remarks.
       2. The most important additional information about a star, although the
         NSV compilers did not intend to present complete bibliographies for any
         cataloged stars.
       3. Remarks for visual binaries (in parentheses following the number of a
         star in the corresponding catalog) giving visual magnitudes for the
         individual components A and B, angular separations, and position angles
         for faint components (or semimajor axis of a relative orbit and period
         of orbital motion).  Data for other components are then given where
         applicable.  (Combined magnitudes are generally reported in the
         machine-readable table.)
    Note (3): type of variability (see file vartype.txt).
      The system of variable star classification corresponds to the GCVS4,
      with six additions (ZZO, AM, R, BE, LBV, BLBOO) introduced in the
      Name-Lists 67- 72 and in the GCVS vol.V.
    Note (4): The star's magnitude in minimum and maximum brightness.
      Instead of the magnitude in minimum, the star's amplitude of variation may
      be indicated (in brackets).  Magnitudes are reported to hundredths if the
      observations are photoelectric or CCD, to tenths or whole magnitudes if they
      are not.  If only an amplitude has been measured photoelectrically, then
      the maximum magnitude is generally given to tenths only and the minimum
      is reported to hundredths.
    Note (8): The identification of the suspected variable in the
      paper referenced above.  DM numbers are given without a prefix, the
      standard naming convention of "The Henry Draper Catalogue" being used
      (BD for zones +89 to -22; CD for -23 to -51; CP for -52 to -89).
      Some identifications are given by coordinate designations, a 6-digit
      number consisting of hours, minutes, and seconds (or tenths of a minute)
      of time and degrees of declination with sign included.  An asterisk (*)
      signifies that a designation is given in the remarks to the published
      catalog.
      Stars are sometimes designated with numbers from the catalogs of Zinner
      (ZI, 1929) and Prager (PR, 1934, 1937) because the original discovery
      publications were not available to the NSV compilers.  The catalogs of
      Zinner and Prager give detailed references to early observations of such
      stars.
    Note (9): For NSV, Spectral types and subtypes only are given.
      Most luminosity classes are III to V, but if a star is a supergiant,
      more detailed classification information is given in the remarks to the
      published catalog.  The following symbols are used:
                      AF     A-F
                      AM     Am
                      AP     Ap
                      BE     Be
                      E      emission spectrum
                      EA     e sub alpha
                      EV     variable emission in spectrum
                      FG     F-G
                      KM     K-M
                      OF     Of
                      PD     Pd
                      T      characteristics of T Tauri stars
      For NSVS, Spectral types, subtypes and luminosity classes are given.
      More detailed classification information is given in the remarks to the
      catalog.
      Also the following symbols are used:
                      AF       A-F
                      cont     continuum
                      e        emission spectrum
                      ea       e sub alpha
                      FG       F-G
                      KM       K-M
                      *        see Sp type in remarks

    Byte-by-byte Description of file:  nsv_rem.dat

       Bytes Format Units   Label    Explanations

       1-  5  I05   ---     NSV      NSV number (above 15000 for the Supplement)
       7- 80  A74   ---     Text     Text of remark

    Byte-by-byte Description of file:  evs_cat.dat

       Bytes Format Units   Label     Explanations

       1-  7  I07   ---     VarNum    [890001/1230042] Variable number (1)
       9- 20  A12   ---     Name      Variable star designation (3)
          21  A1    ---     n_Name    [*] indicates a remark in file evs_rem.dat
      22- 23  I2    h       RAh       Right ascension, equinox B1950.0
      24- 25  I2    min     RAm       (minutes)
      26- 30  F5.2  s       RAs       (seconds)
          31  A1    ---     DE-       sign of declination, B1950.0
      32- 33  I2    deg     DEd       Declination, equinox B1950.0
      34- 35  I2    arcmin  DEm       (arc minutes)
      36- 39  F4.1  arcsec  DEs       (arc seconds)
          40  A1    ---     u_DEs     [":*!] accuracy flags on position (G2)
      41- 48  A8    ---     VarType   Type of variability (see file "vartype.txt")
      49- 53  F5.2  mag     magMax    ? Magnitude at maximum brightness
          54  A1    ---     u_magMax  Uncertainty flag (:) on magMax
          55  A1    ---     l_magMin  [<(] Limit or amplitude symbol on magMax (G3)
      56- 61  F6.3  mag     magMin    ? Magnitude at minimum brightness or amplitude
          62  A1    ---     u_magMin  Uncertainty flag (:) on magMin
          63  A1    ---     ---       [)] ")" if magMin is an amplitude
          64  A1    ---     flt       The photometric system for magnitudes (G4)
      65- 78  F14.6 d       Epoch     ? Epoch for maximum light, Julian days (G5)
          79  A1    ---     u_Epoch   Uncertainty flag on Epoch
          80  A1    ---     l_P       [(] if mean cycle time of U Gem-type variable
      81- 93  F13.8 d       P         ? Period (mean for U Gem-type)
          94  A1    ---     u_P       Uncertainty flag (:) on P
          95  A1    ---     ---       [)] for U Gem-type variable
      96- 97  I2    %       M-m/D     ? Rising time or duration of eclipse (G6)
          98  A1    ---     u_M-m/D   Uncertainty flag (:) on M-m/D
          99  A1    ---     n_M-m/D   [*] Note for eclipsing variable (G6)
     100-105  A6    ---     SpType    Spectral type (4)
     107-111  A5    ---     Ref1      Reference for study of the star (G7)
     112-116  A5    ---     Ref2      Reference for chart or photograph (G7)
     118-131  A14   ---     Desig1    designation in paper Ref1
     132-143  A12   ---     Desig2    designation in paper Ref2
     144-152  A9    ---     VarName   Designation in GCVS (G8)
     154-155  A2    ---     Mm        [n: ] Non-member note (5)
     156-159  I4    yr      Year      ? Year of outburst for novae or supernovae
         160  A1    ---     u_Year    [:] Uncertainty flag on YearNova

    Note (1): Number of the variable star.
        This numbering system is made of a 3-digit number identifying the
        galaxy, followed by a 4-digit number identifying the variable in the
        galaxy. The numbering system for galaxies begins with 089, the first
        88 codes being reserved for constellations (cf. column "VarNum" in
        file "gcvs_cat.dat")

        If in the literature for the considered galaxy there exist several
        different variable star numbering systems, we have introduced new
        numbers in the order of increasing right ascension for the equinox
        1950.0. But if the variable star numbering system for the galaxy is
        practically of general use, we have retained it - if necessary, with
        additional numbers ordered by increasing right ascension.
    Note (3): Variable star Designation.
        The name of the variable in the adopted system of variable star
        designations: name of the galaxy + "V" + variable star No. within the
        galaxy (see column VarNo)
    Note (4):
        If there exist several spectral type determinations for a star, we
        preferred more recent ones, taking into account reliability of each
        determination. We converted symbols "d" (dwarfs) and "g" (giants) into
        luminosity classes V and III. If a nova showed spectral features
        typical of novae during or after the outburst, a symbol (NOVA) is
        given in this column. If the spectrum shows features characteristic of
        U Gem variables, this column contains the symbol (UG). Continuous
        spectrum is designated "cont", the symbol "e" means emission spectrum,
        lower case letters "ea", "eb" in this column stand for "e alpha", "e
        beta". For RR Lyrae stars, spectral types from hydrogen lines are
        given. A plus sign (+) between two spectral type values means that
        spectra of two components of a spectroscopic binary are observed. Two
        spectral type values separated with a minus sign (-) mean the range of
        spectral type variations in the process of brightness changes.
    Note (5):
        Symbols "n" or "n:" for "nonmembers" or "possible nonmembers" of the
        galaxy in question. For the stars that enter the GCVS vols. I-III
        (file gcvs_cat.dat) or the NSV catalogue (file "nsv_cat.dat") and are
        not members of the corresponding galaxy, the present volume gives only
        the running number, coordinates, the symbol "n", and the GCVS or NSV
        name.

    Byte-by-byte Description of file:  evs_rem.dat

       Bytes Format Units   Label     Explanations

       1- 12  A12   ---     Name      Variable star designation
      14- 80  A67   ---     Text      Text of remark

    Byte-by-byte Description of file:  refs.dat

       Bytes Format Units   Label     Explanations

       1-  5  A5    ---     Ref       Reference number (G7)
       7- 80  A74   ---     Text      Text of reference

    Global Notes:

    Note (G1):
       the position is not listed when the variable is equivalent to another
       catalogued variable ("=" in column Exists, byte 168).
    Note (G2):
      (:) a flag indicating that the coordinates are actually rougher than
      the accuracy standard adopted in the this table.
      The actual accuracy of coordinates is indicated with the symbols:
      (:) means right ascensions accurate to one second of time and
          declinations accurate to one tenth of an arcminute;
      (*) means declinations accurate to one arcminute.
    Note (G3):
      The symbols are:
      ">" to indicate a faint limit
      "<" to indicate a bright limit
      "(" to indicate a that the value represents an amplitude
    Note (G4):
      Code for photometric system.
      Field is non-blank if magMin is a magnitude or amplitude given in a
      system other than that indicated by magCode.
      The main codes are p (or P, PH, pg) (photographic magnitudes) and
      V (visual, photovisual, or Johnson's V).
      Several stars from the 68th Name-List have in these positions
      "1." designating the 1.04 µm band of the
      system introduced by G.W.Lockwood. The designations u,v,b,y refer to
      the Stroemgren system. The symbols "Ic" and "Rc" mean magnitudes in
      Cousins' I system. "g" designates magnitudes in the system of Thuan
      and Gunn; "T" stands for broad-band Tycho magnitudes formed from B and
      V measurements; "r" are red magnitudes not tied to a particular
      system. An asterisk "*" in the corresponding position means a measurement
      in white light.
      The designations u, v, b, y refer to the Stroemgren system.  The symbols
      Ic, Rc mean magnitudes in Cousins' I, R system; Hp, T - in Hipparcos
      and Tycho mission systems; J, H, K, L, M - infrared magnitudes.
      G - Gaia magnitude
      u', g' r' i' - SDSS photmetric system

      See also the documents by Kholopov et al. (1985-1988) or Warren (1988).
    Note (G5):
      Epochs are given for minimum light for all eclipsing and ellipsoidal
      variables, as well as for RV Tau and RS CVn types, and for maximum for
      all other types.  This rule may occasionally be broken, but this is
      explained only in the remarks to the catalog, which are not available
      in machine-readable form at this time.
      The epochs are Julian dates, with the starting figures 24... omitted;
      The only exception is WY Sge, where the complete epoch is JD 237249:.
      The codes ":" are used if the epoch is uncertain.
    Note (G6):
        (M-m) or (D) values help to define the shape of the light curve,
        expressed as a percentage of the period of the variable:
        -- duration of the eclipse (D) for eclipsing binaries;
        -- duration of the rising time (m-M) for intrinsic variables.
        An asterisk (*) in the column "n_M-m/D" means, for an eclipsing
        variable, that the duration of the constant brightness phase in
        minimum (d) for this star is equal to zero.
        A colon (:) denotes a poor precision.
    Note (G7):
       All references are detailed in the file "refs.dat".References:
      "00001" - if the main characteristics of the star were determined by
                the authors themselves.
      "00002" - "10204" -   GCVS 4.2
      "N0001" - "N0412" -   New designations GCVS 5.1
      "V 001" - "V 554" - Catalogue of Extragalactic Variable stars, evs_ref.dat
      "67001" - "81321" -  Name-Lists Nos.67-81
      "  HIP"           -  The Special Name-List No.74 for Hipparcos Variables.
      "n0001" - "n2910" - references to the Suspected variables (first part)
      "s0001" - "s2022" - references to the Suspected variables (supplement
      If no chart is available for the variable, but the star is contained in
      one of the Durchmusterung catalogs or the Hubble Space Telescope Guide
      Star Catalog, the corresponding abbreviation
       (BD, CPD, CoD, GSC, HIP, USNO, 2MASS, UCAC2) is given.
    Note (G8): an alternative name may contain:
      * a GCVS name (file "gcvs_dat.dat")
      * a "Name-list" number if it starts by the two-digit number 67 to 77,
        and is followed by the four-digit number of the star in the
        corresponding Name-list.
      * the designation of an extragalactic variable (GCVS Vol. V, see file
        "evs_cat.dat"). The name may be followed by an asterisk (*) which
        means the presence of remarks in Vol. V.

    History of the Catalogue:
      * February 1992: first version of GCVS 4.0 catalogue (Cat. II/214)
      * July 1996: Version 4.1 (Cat. II/214A)
      * 30-Jan-2004: Version 4.2 prepared by
         N.N. Samus [Moscow Inst. Astron.] and O.V. Durlevich [Sternberg]
      * 29-Dec-2004: Version 4.2 prepared at CDS, with merged NSV
         catalogues and references (Francois Ochsenbein [CDS], Cat. II/250)
      * 26-Jun-2007: Prepared as a regularly updated data-base (B/gcvs)
         from files at http://www.sai.msu.su/groups/cluster/gcvs/gcvs/
      * 20-Dec-2008: Version 2008-Nov
      * 18-Jan-2009: Version 2009-Jan
      * 07-Jun-2009: Version 2009-Jun (41639 variables in gcvs_cat.dat)
      * 12-Jul-2009: Version 2009-Jul (corrections in nsv_cat.dat)
      * 13-Sep-2009: Version 2009-Sep (corrections in crossid.dat)
      * 27-Sep-2009: Version 2009-Sep (corrections in gcvs_cat.dat crossid.dat)
      * 22-Nov-2009: Version 2009-Sep (corrections in gcvs_cat.dat crossid.dat)
      * 31-Jan-2010: Version 2010-Jan (corrections in gcvs, crossid and nsv)
      * 25-Jul-2010: Version 2010-Jul (corrections in gcvs_cat, gcvs_rem and refs)
      * 26-Sep-2010: Version 2010-Sep (corrections in gcvs_cat, crossid, nsv_rem)
      * 31-Oct-2010: Version 2010-Sep (corrections in gcvs_cat, crossid)
      * 19-Dec-2010: Version 2010-Dec (corrections in crossid)
      * 23-Jan-2011: Version 2011-Jan (changes in remarks, references)
      * 23-Feb-2011: File "nsv_cat.dat" for NSV 11783: removed "1 3" in
         the "SpType" column (error communicated by Edward J. Sabol)
      * 20-Mar-2011: Version 2011-Mar (corrections in gcvs_cat, crossid, nsv)
      * 03-Apr-2011: Version 43675 variables
      * 15-Apr-2011: Version 2011-Apr (corrections in crossid)
      * 26-May-2011: Version 2011-May (corrections in crossid)
      * 17-Jul-2011: Version 2011-Jul (corrections in crossid + cat_nsv)
      * 15-Jan-2012: Version 2012-Jan (corrections in crossid + gcvs_rem)
      * 26-Feb-2012: Version 2012-Feb (45835 variables in gcvs_cat.dat)
      * 11-Mar-2012: Version 2012-Mar (additions & correction in crossid + gcvs_rem)
      * 15-Apr-2012: Minor changes in gcvs_cat.dat and crossid.dat
      * 30-Apr-2013: the "gcvs_cat.dat" file contains new columns with the
         secondary minimum characteristics. The catalog includes the
         Name List #80 part#3, for a total of 47969 variables (+2134)
      * 11-Sep-2017: GCVS 5.1. Version 2017-Mar
      * 17-Sep-2018: update
         the "gcvs_cat.dat" file contains new columns with the
         proper motions and the new type of variablility.
         The catalog includes the Name lists 67-81, for a total
         of 52011 variables.
      * 04-nov-2019: new version
      * 09-feb-2020: new version
      * 01-nov-2020: new version
      * 30-nov-2020: new version
      * 17-may-2021: new version
      * 06-sep-2021: new version
      * 20-mar-2023: new version
      * 30-oct-2023: new version
    ================================================================================
    (End)  N.N. Samus [Moscow Inst. Astron.], Francois Ochsenbein [CDS]  18-Jan-2009