[IAUC] CBET 2594: 20101218 : APPARENT NOVA IN M31

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                                                  Electronic Telegram No. 2594
Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION
CBAT Director:  Daniel W. E. Green; Hoffman Lab 209; Harvard University;
 20 Oxford St.; Cambridge, MA  02138; U.S.A.
e-mail:  cbatiau en eps.harvard.edu (alternate cbat en iau.org)
URL http://www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu/index.html
Prepared using the Tamkin Foundation Computer Network


APPARENT NOVA IN M31
     Jiangao Ruan, Fangchenggang, Guangxi, China; and Xing Gao, Urumqi,
Xinjiang, China, report the discovery of a possible nova (mag approximately
17.2) on one 60-s unfiltered CCD survey image (limiting mag about 19.0) taken
by Xing Gao in the course of the Xingming Observatory Sky Survey at Mt.
Nanshan around Dec. 15.528 UT using a Celestron C14 35.6-cm f/6.9 Schmidt-
Cassegrain telescope.  The new object is approximately located at R.A. =
0h42m56s.67 +/- 0s.01, Decl. = +41d17'21".2 +/- 0".1 (equinox 2000.0), which
is about 139" east and 73" north of the center of NGC 224.  Additional
Xingming magnitudes for the variable:  Dec. 13, [19.0; 14, [19.0; 16.517,
17.1; 16.518, 17.0.  Nothing is visible at this position on a Digitized Sky
Survey image (from a IIIa-J plate + GG495 filter) taken on 1985 Dec. 17.
The Xingming images have been posted at the following website URL:
http://www.xjltp.com/XOSS/XM08JR/XM08JR.htm.

     Kamil Hornoch and Adrian Galad, Astronomical Institute, Ondrejov, report
their independent discovery of the above variable in M31 on a co-added 2340-s
R-band CCD frame taken under poor conditions on Dec. 16.729 UT with the 0.65-m
telescope at Ondrejov.  The new object is well visible on single images used
for the co-added frame and is located at R.A. = 0h42m56s.67, Decl. =
+41o17'21".3 (equinox 2000.0), which is 139" east and 73" north of the center
of M31.  The measured position is only about 0".7 from the best position for
the "Fe II"-class nova M31N 2010-01a (cf. CBETs 2124, 2127, 2136, 2187) that
was measured by Hornoch from the 2.4-m Hiltner telescope image taken by J.
Prieto and R. Khan on 2010 Jan. 13.110 UT, which suggests that the currently
detected bright object could be caused by another outburst of M31N 2010-01a.
Available R-band magnitudes for the variable during its current outburst,
measured by Hornoch:  Dec. 4.211 UT, [21.7 (P. Garnavich and J. Pagnini,
1.83-m Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope + Vatt4k imager); 13.930, [18.5
(Hornoch, 0.65-m telescope at Ondrejov); 16.729, R = 16.5 +/- 0.1 (Hornoch
and Galad, 0.65-m telescope at Ondrejov).

     Following a request from Kabashima and Nishiyama, T. Yusa (Osaki, Japan)
writes that he has confirmed the appearance of the above variable at mag 16.4
on 90-s unfiltered CCD exposures (limiting mag 18.5) taken on Dec. 17.392 UT
using a 0.30-m f/7 Cassegrain telescope (+ SBIG STL-1001E camera); he measured
position end figures 56s.64, 21".3 for the variable, and his image is posted
at URL http://www.palette.furukawa.miyagi.jp/space/images/PNinM31_101217.jpg.


NOTE: These 'Central Bureau Electronic Telegrams' are sometimes
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                         (C) Copyright 2010 CBAT
2010 December 18                 (CBET 2594)              Daniel W. E. Green