We present the data of photoelectric photometric observations of BW Vul carried out for four nights during the period of 1982 ∼ 1984 . The light curves with asymmetric shape show a stillstand on the ascending branch at phase of ϕ ≈ 0.85 just before the maximum light, and also the ampitude and shape of light curves are changed from night to night. Using all the published data, a new ephemeris of maximum time is derived, in which the period of light variation is P = 0 d .20102977 and its increasing rate is 2.2 see/century.
Making use of the arbitrary shock theory developed by Ulmschneider (1967, 1971) and Ulmschneider and Kalkofen (1978), we have calculated the dissipation rates of upward-travelling slow-mode acoustic shock waves in umbral chromospheres for two umbral chromosphere models, a plateau model by Avrett (1981) and a gradient model by Yun and Beebe (1984). The computed shock dissipation rates are compared with the radiative cooling rate given by Avrett (1981). The results show that the slow-mode acoustic shock waves with a period of about 20 second can heat the low umbral chromospheres travelling with a mechanical energy flux of 2.6 × 10 6 e r g / c m 2 s at a height of 300 ∼ 400 k m above the temperature minimum region.