Serendipitous discovery of a cataclysmic variable in the globular cluster NGC 6624

Despite indications that classical cataclysmic variable (CV) stars are rare in globular clusters in general, and in the cluster NGC 6624 in particular , we have serendipitously discovered such a star similar to 6 " from the cl uster center. A Hubble Space Telescope spectrum of the m similar to 22 obje ct shows strong, broad emission lines typical of numerous field CVs, and th e inferred optical and UV luminosity are also similar. Our accidental obser vation also provides the first high-quality ultraviolet spectrum of a globu lar cluster CV. That we have detected such an object in an observation that includes just a few percent of the central area of the cluster may indicat e that cluster CVs are more common than previously thought, at least near t he core.