Glazar-2: A Wide-Field Camera Aboard the Mir Space Station

Abstract

In 1987 the UV imaging telescope Glazar (Tovmassian et al. 1988) was launched to the Mir Space Station. Its sensitivity was lower than was expected. For this reason the UV survey of the sky was not done and only observations of OB stellar associations were made. The fields of about 15 stellar associations and of the Large Magellanic Cloud were observed. Only images of O, B or early A type stars were obtained on the Glazar photographs at 1640 Å. The observations allowed the detection of an average ∼ 15 % new, unknown OB type stars in each of the observed fields, the discovery of hot unknown components of some late type stars and a detailed study of the distribution of stars in space. Some new, unknown OB stellar associations were discovered and more correct distances of stellar associations were determined. The distribution of the absorbing matter was also studied. New, B-type stellar associations, named B were discovered.