M31N 2022-03c is Not a Recurrence of M31N 1954-11c
ATel #15683; A. W. Shafter (SDSU), F. Schweizer (Carnegie Institution for Science), K. Hornoch (Astronomical Institute, Ondrejov, Czech Republic)
on 15 Oct 2022; 18:43 UT
Credential Certification: Allen W. Shafter (ashafter@sdsu.edu)
Subjects: Optical, Nova, Transient
The recent nova M31N 2022-03c
(R.A. = 00h 42m 31.48s, Decl. = +41deg 11' 51.1", J2000.0)
has been suggested as a possible recurrence of
M31N 1954-11c (R.A. = 00h 42m 31.56s, Decl. = 41deg 11' 57.9", J2000.0) --
Nova #17 from Arp's classic 1956 survey (Arp, H. C., 1956, AJ, 61, 15).
Although the reported positions of these two novae differed by ~6.9"
(mostly in declination), the uncertainties can be large, especially those
based on older photographic surveys. Thus, in order to measure
an accurate position for the nova, and to directly compare it with
that of M31N 2022-03c, we examined the original M31N 1954-11c
discovery plate (S1746A), which was taken by H. C. Arp on the night of
28 Nov. 1954 UT.
Our revised position for M31N 1954-11c is given by
R.A. (J2000.0) = 00h 42m 32.04s, Decl. (J2000.0) = +41deg 11' 57.5",
with an estimated uncertainty of ±0.8" in each coordinate. As suspected,
our revised position differs significantly (~5.4") from the original position,
but this time with most of the discrepancy in right ascension.
Our revised position for M31N 1954-11c now differs from that of M31N 2022-03c
by ~9" (~6.4" in both coordinates). This positional discrepancy is
nicely confirmed by a superposition of the images for both novae,
which can be accessed through the link supplied below.
Clearly, M31N 1954-11c and M31N 2022-03c are unrelated novae.
Comparison image
