Electronic Telegram No. 1288 Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION M.S. 18, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Cambridge, MA 02138, U.S.A. IAUSUBS@CFA.HARVARD.EDU or FAX 617-495-7231 (subscriptions) CBAT@CFA.HARVARD.EDU (science) URL http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/iau/cbat.html SUPERNOVA 2008I IN NGC 3978 J. M. Silverman and A. V. Filippenko, University of California, Berkeley; and L.-H. Chien, Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii, report that inspection of a CCD spectrogram (range 320-690 nm), obtained on Mar. 4 UT with the Keck I 10-m telescope (+ LRIS), shows that 2008I (CBET 1210) is a type-II supernova. The spectrum exhibits hydrogen Balmer lines having P-Cyg profiles. Removing the host-galaxy recession velocity of 9700 km/s, calculated from narrow emission lines, the minimum of the H-alpha absorption is blueshifted by about 6600 km/s. NOTE: These 'Central Bureau Electronic Telegrams' are sometimes superseded by text appearing later in the printed IAU Circulars. (C) Copyright 2008 CBAT 2008 March 6 (CBET 1288) Daniel W. E. Green