[25.01] The Flaring UV Sky

AAS 205th Meeting, 9-13 January 2005
Session 25 Galaxy Evolution Explorer Mission
Poster, Monday, January 10, 2005, 9:20am-6:30pm, Exhibit Hall

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[25.01] The Flaring UV Sky

B.Y. Welsh, J.M. Wheatley (UC Berkeley), K. Heafield, M. Seibert (Caltech), S.E. Browne (UC Berkeley), GALEX Science Team

We report on the detection of over 90 variable and transient sources serendipitously detected at ultraviolet wavelengths (1350 - 2750 Å) during the first year's observations by the NASA Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX). Many of of the brightest time-variable objects are nearby M-dwarf flare stars, one of which exhibited a brightening of 10 UV magnitudes in a period of only 600 seconds. This explosive event was over 20 times more energetic than any previously recorded flare in the ultraviolet.

We present our data in a preliminary catalogue of time-variable objects that includes their position, UV magnitude variation and possible source identity. Finally, we derive the approximate energy input into the interstellar medium from these UV outbursts to determine if this is a significant source of ionization for the local interstellar gas.

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