New optical nova candidate in M 31
ATel #2304; P. Podigachoski, W. Pietsch, M. Henze, V. Burwitz (Max-Planck-Institut fuer extraterrestrische Physik, MPE), A. Updike (Clemson University, CU), P. Milne, G. Williams (University of Arizona), D. H. Hartmann (CU)
on 19 Nov 2009; 14:37 UT
Credential Certification: Wolfgang Pietsch (wnp@mpe.mpg.de)
We report the discovery of a possible nova in M 31 on a 12x60s stacked R filter CCD image obtained with the robotic 60cm telescope with an E2V CCD (2kx2k, 13.5 micron sq. pixels) of the Livermore OpticalTransient Imaging System (Super-LOTIS, located at Steward Observatory, Kitt Peak, Arizona, USA). The object was detected on 2009 November 19.19 UT with magnitude of 18.1. The object is clearly visible on the individual images. The position for the nova candidate is RA = 00h44m16.85s, Dec = +41d18'53.6"(J2000, accuracy of 0.3"), which is 1043" east and 165" north of the core of M 31. The magnitude given is obtained from a photometric solution using R magnitudes of the Local Group Survey M 31 catalogue (Massey et al. 2006, AJ 131, 2478). No object is visible at the position of the nova candidate on a Super-LOTIS image of 2009 November 18.19 UT (limiting R magnitude at the position of 19.5). There is no entry in VizieR/CDS for this object and no minor planet could be found on this position using the MPC/IAU Minor Planet Checker (see http://scully.harvard.edu/~cgi/CheckMP ).
Koichi Nishiyama, Kurume, Fukuoka-ken and Fujio Kabashima, Miyaki-cho, Saga-ken, Japan reported to us the independent discovery of the object in observations taken at 2009 November 19.488.
