Independent Discovery of an Apparent Nova in M31, AT 2026aoj
ATel #17609; K. Hornoch, H. Kucakova (Ondrejov), A. W. Shafter (SDSU)
on 18 Jan 2026; 20:15 UT
Distributed as an Instant Email Notice Novae
Credential Certification: Allen W. Shafter (ashafter@sdsu.edu)
Subjects: Optical, Nova, Transient
Referred to by ATel #: 17614
We report the independent discovery of an apparent nova found during our survey of the central region of M31. The object was discovered on a co-added 660-s R-band CCD frame taken on 2026 Jan. 18.688 UT with the 0.65-m telescope at Ondrejov.
The object was independently discovered on Jan. 18.550 UT by
J. Xu et al.
and on Jan. 18.618 UT by R. Fidrich and T. Tordai
(Vend83).
The object has been designated by us as M31N 2026-01c and is located at R.A. = 0h42m52s.37, Decl. = +41o16'13".2 (equinox 2000.0), which is 90.7" east and 4.7" north of the center of M31 (see link to discovery image below).
The position of M31N 2026-01c is very close to that of the known recurrent nova M31N 1926-07c. Thus, as also noted by J. Xu et al. and by R. Fidrich and T. Tordai, the current outburst is likely a subsequent eruption of this recurrent nova. We are currently working to confirm the spatial coincidence of the novae.
The following R-band magnitudes were obtained using the 0.65-m telescope at Ondrejov (D65):
Date [UT] | Mag | Err | Filter | Telescope
2026-01-17.865 | >19.6 | | R | D65
2026-01-18.688 | 17.15 | 0.1 | R | D65
2026-01-18.701 | 17.23 | 0.09 | R | D65
As with all extragalactic novae, follow-up spectroscopic and photometric observations to confirm the nova's nature and determine its spectroscopic class and rate of decline (speed class) are encouraged.
Discovery image
