NOVA-MUSCAE 1991, AN EXCITING DWARF X-RAY TRANSIENT

Nova Muscae 1991 is by now one of the best studied objects in the class of Dwarf X-ray Transients. It was discovered early in its development, and, by good fortune, observations of the emission in hard X-rays was obtained from the moment of discovery. The optical identification followed after a few days, and it was bright enough both in the optical and in the UV domain to allow high quality spectra to be obtained over a broad spectral range. In this review the time and spectral evolution of Nova Muscae 1991 is discussed with emphasis on the knowledge which can be gained by considering together the wide range of observations of this system which is now available. Key observations to be performed on future outbursts of similar nature are suggested.