Abstract:
The FU Orionis (FUor) or EX Orionis (EXor) phenomenon has attracted increasing attention in recent years and is now accepted as a crucial element in the early evolution of low-mass stars. FUor and EXor eruptions of young stellar objects (YSOs) are caused by strongly enhanced accretion from the surrounding disk. FUors display optical outbursts of &sim 4 mag or more and last for several decades, whereas EXors show smaller outbursts (Δ m ∼ 2 - 3 mag) that last from a few months to a few years and may occur repeatedly. Therefore, FUor/EXor eruptions represent a rare but very important phenomenon in early stellar evolution, during which a young low-mass YSO brightens by up to several optical magnitudes. Hence, long-term observations of this class of eruptive variables are important to design theoretical models of low-mass star formation. In this paper, we present recent results from our long-term monitoring observations of three rare types of eruptive young variables with the 2-m Himalayan Chandra Telescope (HCT) and the 2-m IUCAA Girawali Observatory (IGO) telescope.
