We observed the long-term behavior of the helium dwarf nova V803 Cen , and clarified the existence of at least two distinct states ( a state with 77-d supercycles and a standstill-like state ) that interchangeably appeared with a time-scale of 1–2 yr. We also conducted a time-resolved CCD photometry campaign during the bright outburst in 2003 June .
The overall appearance of the outburst closely resemble that of the late stage of the 2001 outburst of WZ Sge , consisting of the initial peak stage ( superoutburst plateau ) , the dip , and the oscillating ( rebrightening ) states .
During the initial peak stage , we detected a large-amplitude superhump-type variation with a period of 0.018686 ( 4 ) d = 1614.5 ( 4 ) s , and during the oscillation stage , we detected variations with a period of 0.018728 ( 2 ) d = 1618.1 ( 2 ) s. We consider that the former period better represents the superhump period of this system , and the latter periodicity may be better interpreted as arising from late superhumps .
The overall picture of the V803 Cen outburst resembles that of a WZ Sge-type outburst , but apparently with a higher mass-transfer rate than in hydrogen-rich WZ Sge-type stars .
We suggest that this behavior may be either the result of difficulty in maintaining the hot state in a helium disk , or the effect of an extremely low tidal torque resulting from the extreme mass ratio .