[IAUC] IAUC 9019: N LMC 2009; C/2007 N3 [25139-2009/08-R1]

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                                                  Circular No. 9019
Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION
Mailstop 18, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Cambridge, MA 02138, U.S.A.
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NOVA IN THE LARGE MAGELLANIC CLOUD 2009
     W. Liller, Vina del Mar, Chile, reports the discovery of a
possible recurrent nova in the Large Magellanic Cloud on two
unfiltered Kodak Technical Pan films taken on Feb. 5; at mag
approximately 10.6 on Feb. 5.067 UT, the star is located at R.A. =
5h40m.7, Decl. = -66o40' (equinox 2000.0).  Nothing brighter than
mag 14.0 was visible at this position on Jan. 31.065, but it was
confirmed though faded to mag approximately 11.8 on Feb. 7.092.
This position is close to that given for the second 1971 LMC nova
(R.A. = 5h40m.6, Decl. = -66o40', equinox 2000.0; cf. IAUC 2353)
and may be a recurrence of that nova; however, only one observation
was reported for the earlier nova, and its V magnitude was given as
13.0, suggesting that it was well past maximum.
     H. E. Bond, Space Telescope Science Institute; F. M. Walter,
Stony Brook University; and E. Cosgrove and J. Espinoza, Cerro
Tololo Interamerican Observatory (CTIO), report observations of
Liller's nova with the SMARTS 1.3- and 1.5-m telescopes at CTIO.  A
shallow I-band frame obtained with the 1.3-m telescope on Feb. 7.1
UT yields position R.A. = 5h40m44s.20, Decl. = -66o40'11".6
(equinox 2000.0; +/- 0".1 in each coordinate, measured relative to
five nearby USNO-NOMAD-catalogue stars).  A spectrum (range 385-455
nm; resolution 0.16 nm) obtained with the 1.5-m telescope on Feb.
8.1 shows broad, flat-topped emission at H_gamma and H_delta with
FWHM about 3900 km/s, with P-Cyg wind absorption features at about
-3800 km/s.  A similar, weaker feature due to He I 447.1-nm is also
present.


COMET C/2007 N3 (LULIN)
     M. D. Hicks and K. J. Lawrence, Jet Propulsion Laboratory; and
J. M. Somers, Moorpark College, report that Bessel-R observations
of C/2007 N3, obtained at the Palomar Hale 5-m telescope on Feb.
2.58 UT, yield magnitude R = 7.27 +/- 0.02 in a 4'-diameter
photometric aperture.  This corresponds to an Af(rho) value (cf.
IAUC 7342) of 16.6 +/- 0.9 m, which is approximately 0.1 that of
post-perihelion measurements of comet 1P/Halley obtained at a
similar heliocentric distance (Schleicher et al. 1998, Icarus 132,
397).  Long-slit CCD spectrograms of C/2007 N3 were also obtained,
and analysis is ongoing.
     Visual total-magnitude and coma-diameter estimates:  Jan. 4.25
UT, 7.1, 5' (J. J. Gonzalez, Leon, Spain, 10x50 binoculars); 24.21,
6.9, 6'.5 (W. Hasubick, Buchloe, Germany, 10x50 binoculars); Feb.
4.50, 6.3, 10' (C. S. Morris, Fillmore, CA, U.S.A., 10x50
binoculars); 7.86, 6.1, 11' (K. Yoshimoto, Yamaguchi, Japan, 7x35
binoculars).

                      (C) Copyright 2008 CBAT
2009 February 8                (9019)            Daniel W. E. Green