A class of binary stars, W Serpentis, will be observed and analyzed with a simple model. The stars are in a brief, rapid phase of mass transfer involving formation of accretion disks and gas clouds enveloping both stars. Observations will be made on a total of three telescopes in Florida and Texas and involve two faculty and at least two undergraduate students both at Florida Institute of Technology and at Stephen F. Austin State University in Texas. Stars age as they use up their nuclear fuels. The manner in which they age has influenced cosmic evolution and the ingredients that went into making our Solar System. Binary stars age by exchanging mass. Observations will be made of one particular group of binary stars with particularly active mass transfer. The program is a collaborative effort of two institutions, faculty, and students eligible for the Research in Undergraduate Institutions Program. Sufficiently frequent observations are assured because the observing sites, located in Florida and Texas, have different weather patterns.
