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The International Epsilon Aurigae Campaign 2009-2011. A description of the campaign and early results to May 2010

In early 2009, immediately following the end of the WR140 periastron campaign (see these proceedings), I turned my telescope back to epsilon Aurigae in time for the start of the eclipse. As well as being an interesting object in its own right, the Pro-Am campaign being run on epsilon Aurigae during the current eclipse is a good example of how amateur spectroscopists can make a useful contribution. epsilon Aurigae is a naked eye magnitude 3 star and was first noted to be variable by Johan Frisch in 1821. It was subsequently found to be an eclipsing binary with a period of 27.1 years which undergoes an approximately 2 year long flat-bottomed eclipse with approximately 0.8 magnitude drop in V.