Electronic Telegram No. 1528
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)
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NOVA IN M81
     M. M. Kasliwal, R. Quimby, S. B. Cenko, A. Rau, E. O. Ofek, and S. R.
Kulkarni, California Institute of Technology, report their discovery on Sept.
25.49 UT of a nova located at R.A. = 9h55m59s.35, Decl. = +69o05'57".1
(equinox 2000.0), which is 141" east and 122" north of the center of M81.
Discovered with the Palomar 1.5-m reflector in the course of their "Fast
Transients In Nearby Galaxies" search program, the nova was at magnitude
g = 19.5 +/- 0.1 at discovery (photometric calibration with respect to the
Sloan Digital Sky Survey catalogue) and faded to g = 20.8 on Oct. 4.49; it
was not detected on July 9.19, with 3-sigma upper limits of g > 21.5.
Spectroscopic confirmation was obtained on Sept. 29.51 with the Hale 5-m
telescope (+ Double Beam Spectrograph), revealing prominent Balmer lines
(H-alpha FWHM about 3000 km/s) and Fe II (42) lines, indicating it to be
a "Fe II"-type nova.


NOTE: These 'Central Bureau Electronic Telegrams' are sometimes
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                         (C) Copyright 2008 CBAT
2008 October 6                   (CBET 1528)              Daniel W. E. Green