Nova Mon 2012 is a Neon nova
ATel #4709; Ulisse Munari (INAF Astron. Obs. Padova)
on 6 Jan 2013; 11:42 UT
Credential Certification: U. Munari (ulisse.munari@oapd.inaf.it)
Subjects: Optical, Cataclysmic Variable, Nova, Variables
A lot of considerable interest surrounds the ongoing outburst of Nova Mon
2012, an unusually slow declining He/N nova, discovered on 2012 June 22 as a
gamma-ray source by the Fermi Large Area Telescope (ATel
#4224), and since then target of many observational efforts in the X-ray,
optical, IR and
radio regimes (ATel #4310, ATel #4320, ATel #4321, ATel #4352, ATel #4365,
ATel #4376, ATel #4408, ATel #4542, ATel #4569, ATel #4572, ATel #4590, ATel #4614,
ATel #4633).
Since its discovery, we are performing an intensive photometric and spectroscopic monitoring of
Nova Mon 2012 at optical wavelengths. Our last absolutely fluxed spectrum
(2.31 Ang/pix, 3300-8100 Ang) was obtained on 2013 January 5.938 UT with the
B&C spectrograph mounted on the Asiago 1.22m telescope operated by the Dept. of Physics
and Astronomy, University of Padova. The spectrum is characterized by huge intensity
of Neon lines ([NeIII], [NeIV], [NeV]), as observed in bona fide Neon novae (Williams et al. 1994,
ApJS 90, 297), with the following table providing integrated fluxes
(in ergs cm(-2) sec(-1)) of some representative lines:
| line | Ang | flux |
| [NeV] | 3426 | 88.4e-12 |
| [NeIII] | 3869 | 55.4e-12 |
| [NeIII] | 3968 | 18.0e-12 |
| Hdelta | | 4.1e-12 |
| Hbeta | | 9.9e-12 |
| HeII + [NeIV] | 4721 | 18.6e-12 |
| [OIII] | 5007 | 59.4e-12 |
| HeII | 5412 | 0.3e-12 |
| [NII] | 5755 | 4.5e-12 |
| HeI | 5876 | 2.9e-12 |
| [FeVII] | 6087 | 2.5e-12 |
| [OI] | 6300 | 1.2e-12 |
| Halpha (+[NII]) | | 67.0e-12 |
| [OII] | 7325 | 6.5e-12 |
The [NeV] 3426 Ang is currently the strongest line at optical wavelengths. The
line profiles remains saddle-like, with an average FWHM of about 2250 km/sec,
and average peaks separation of about 1300 km/sec.
