ACTA ASTRONOMICA Vol. 58 (2008) pp. 279–292 New Variable Stars on Digitized Moscow Collection Plates. Field 66 Ophiuchi (Northern Half) D.M. Kolesnikova1 , L.A. Sat2 , K.V. Sokolovsky2,3,4 , S.V. Antipin2,1 and N.N. Samus1,2 1 Institute of Astronomy, Russian Academy of Sciences, 48, Pyatnitskaya Str., Moscow 119017, Russia 2 Sternberg Astronomical Institute, Moscow University, 13, University Ave., Moscow 119992, Russia e-mail:
[email protected],
[email protected],
[email protected] 3 Astro Space Center of Lebedev Physical Institute, Profsoyuznaya 84/32, 117997 Moscow, Russia 4 Currently at: Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, Auf dem Hügel 69, 53121 Bonn, Germany Received June 9, 2008 ABSTRACT We initiated digitization of the Moscow collection of astronomical plates using flatbed scanners. Techniques of photographic photometry of the digital images were applied, enabling an effective search for new variable stars. Our search for new variables among 140000 stars in the 10◦ × 5◦ northern half of the field centered at 66 Oph, photographed with the Sternberg Institute’s 40-cm astrograph in 1976–1995, gave 274 new discoveries, among them: 2 probable Population II Cepheids, 81 eclipsing variables, 5 high-amplitude δ Sct stars (HADSs), 82 RR Lyr stars, 62 red irregular variables and 41 red semiregular stars, 1 slow irregular variable not red in color. Ephemerides were determined for periodic variable stars. We detected about 30 variability suspects for follow-up CCD observations, confirmed 11 stars from the New Catalog of Suspected Variable Stars, and derived new ephemerides for 2 stars already contained in the General Catalog of Variable Stars.