Period and light‐curve fluctuations of the Kepler Cepheid V1154 Cygni

We present a detailed period analysis of the bright Cepheid-type variable star V1154 Cygni (V1154 Cyg; V = 9.1 mag, P ≈ 4.9 d) based on almost 600 d of continuous observations by the Kepler space telescope. The data reveal significant cycle-to-cycle fluctuations in the pulsation period, indicating that classical Cepheids may not be as accurate astrophysical clocks as commonly believed: regardless of the specific points used to determine the O − C values, the cycle lengths show a scatter of 0.015–0.02 d over 120 cycles covered by the observations. A very slight correlation between the individual Fourier parameters and the O − C values was found, suggesting that the O − C variations might be due to the instability of the light-curve shape. Random-fluctuation tests revealed a linear trend up to a cycle difference 15, but for long term, the period remains around the mean value. We compare the measurements with simulated light curves that were constructed to mimic V1154 Cyg as a perfect pulsator modulated only by the light travel time effect caused by low-mass companions. We show that the observed period jitter in V1154 Cyg represents a serious limitation in the search for binary companions. While the Kepler data are accurate enough to allow the detection of planetary bodies in close orbits around a Cepheid, the astrophysical noise can easily hide the signal of the light-time effect.