New Nova Alert!

[adrenalynn]

Stupid clouds... Sigh. Puppis is just coming up for me...<br /><br />http://www.skyandtelescope.com/resources/proamcollab/astroalert/11352496.html<br /><br />Nova in Puppis<br />This is an AstroAlert from Sky & Telescope.<br />November 15, 2007<br /><br />Alfredo Jose Serra Pereira of Carnaxide, Portugal, has discovered a<br />nova in the constellation Puppis during a visual search with 14 x 100<br />binoculars. He spotted the new star on Nov. 14, 2007, near 5:30<br />Universal Time and estimated its magnitude as 7.0. Within a few hours,<br />James McGaha in Arizona and James Young in California carefully<br />measured the nova's position, describing it as about magnitude 6.4.<br /><br />Nova Puppis 2007 can be found about 1° northeast of RS Puppis, a<br />Cepheid variable star. The nova's 2000.0 coordinates are right<br />ascension 8h 16.3m, declination -34° 15'. Its type is not yet known,<br />nor whether it is still brightening or beginning to fade.<br /><br />Full details of the discovery are on IAU Circular 8895, available by<br />subscription from the Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams in<br />Cambridge, Massachusetts. More information can also be found on Alert<br />Notice 362 of the American Association of Variable Star Observers.<br /><br />The AAVSO website provides a wealth of guidelines for amateurs who<br />wish to get involved in making and submitting magnitude estimates of<br />variable stars and novae.<br /><br />Roger W. Sinnott<br />Senior Editor<br />Sky & Telescope <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[adrenalynn]

I may have a suckerhole. Come on baby - just a few more degrees south... [sigh] <br /><br />[edit @ 04:34PST]<br />I thought Sirius was "the dog star" not "the laughing hyena star"...<br /><br />The nova is just a few degrees below and to the SE of Sirius. Just about the time the Poop Deck (Puppis) cleared the limits of my home observatory (JLRO-1), the sucker hole dried up and was packed with clouds. The nova is in transit now, and up until a few minutes ago, Sirius was still in the hole and still laughing at me, but everything 360deg around it was socked in. Literally the only star I could see in the sky... Grrr - so close. You just have to know I'm going to shut down for the night and it's going to poke its head out... Grrr. <br /><br />Did I mention "Grrr"?<br /><br />[edit: 04:45 PST]<br /><br />Did I mention "Grrr"?<br /><br />Astronomy has the be the most frustrating hobby imaginable... It's been there for billions of years. On the night the flippin' thing decides that it's tired and wants to explode - it's cloudy. Billions of freakin' years, and it picks tonight...<br /><br />[edit] I'm guessing we'll find that it's USNO J0816042-341511, but don't hold me to it... Only thing I can find in my star catalogs in the reported area that might be large enough to practically go nova... <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[usn_skwerl]

So tap betelguese on the shoulder and tell him tis tab's up. <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /><br /><br />That way, myself, and the rest of us cheap backporch astronomers can see a nova/supernova before we die <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[adrenalynn]

I may have it. I got a hole that let me get 16 frames of 30sec each. Trying to plate solve now. Half the stars are through a veil of light clouds which makes figuring out magnitudes kinda rough... <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[adrenalynn]

Ok. I'm too tired. PinPoint can't tell me where it is, or even what I'm looking at.<br /><br />I can't seem to solve it from the star catalogs visually either.<br /><br />I need to give up and get some sleep first...<br /><br />If anyone wants to try their hand at getting a plate solution out of it, drop me a PM. I'll work on it again after I close-up the observatory and get a nap in. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[adrenalynn]

If anyone wants to take a shot at identifying WHERE I was pointing before I get up from my nap and try to get another plate solution - here's some raw data for you to munch on:<br /><br />Photos: http://www.jlrdesigns.com/astrophotography/possible-nova-shot/<br /><br />One is normal, one is inverted. 660KB png files, quarter-sized. The fuzz in the middle is cloud cover. I'll try to remove that when I get up.<br /><br />If someone wants to find a couple identifying stars in the image, here's what you need to know:<br /><br />Reference frame was shot at 05:23 PST from 121.15, +38.40<br /><br />The telescope SHOULD have been centered on: 8h 16.3, -34° 15' but I had no visible reference and it was aligned in a hurry, so that's no absolute guarantee. I do know the stars visible are absolutely in Puppis.<br /><br />TIA!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[qso1]

Anyone know if this nova is in our galaxy? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong>My borrowed quote for the time being:</strong></p><p><em>There are three kinds of people in life. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen...and those who do not know what happened.</em></p> </div>

 

[adrenalynn]

rofl! I missed it by fractions of a second of altitude! (Finally solved the plate. By hand.) Almost five hours of work to discover that I didn't have it!<br /><br />In the pictures below, the framed area on this star chart is what I photographed. The red arrow points to what I needed.<br /><br />http://www.jlrdesigns.com/astrophotography/no-nova/no-nova.jpg<br /><br />And here's the image processed plate that I made:<br />http://www.jlrdesigns.com/astrophotography/no-nova/no-nova-starfield.jpg<br /><br />I'm going to go hang myself now...<br /><br />---<br />QSO - Information is less than scarce out there. Only two confirmations that I've seen, even. The nearest object to the given RA/DEC that has any mass is <br /><br />Name: USNO J0816042-341511<br />Catalogue number: USNO J0816042-341511<br />Object type: Star<br />Rises: Today at 12:49:16 AM<br />Transit: Today at 4:40:29 AM<br />Sets: Today at 8:31:43 AM<br />Constellation name: Puppis<br />Constellation common name: The Poop Deck<br />Constellation possessive form: Puppis<br />Azimuth: 190° 13.032'<br />Altitude: 16° 2.313'<br />Hour angle: 0h 47m 53.3s<br />RA (JNow): 8h 16.378m<br />Dec (JNow): -34° 16.580'<br />RA (J2000): 8h 16.071m<br />Dec (J2000): -34° 15.192'<br />Ecliptic longitude: 138° 55.109'<br />Ecliptic latitude: -52° 5.071'<br />Galactic longitude: 252° 30.005'<br />Galactic latitude: 0° 30.494'<br />Hubble catalogue type: Star<br />Apparent magnitude: 12.25<br /><br /><br />But I haven't managed to image it yet, obviously, so I can't confirm. It's just a guess of the nearest good sized I have in my catalogs. I'll keep searching for any kind of confirmation. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[MeteorWayne]

What's your latitude? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div>

 

[adrenalynn]

It was a star that wasn't even cataloged. It's a "new" star in the sky. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[adrenalynn]

My latitude is 38.7 <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[MeteorWayne]

Oh, a southerner <img src="/images/icons/laugh.gif" /><br />(40d 40m 52s N ) <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div>

 

[adrenalynn]

More of a "centraler". <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[adrenalynn]

Finally! I've managed to image the nova. It's fading rapidly, down to about a 9.0 magnitude.<br /><br />Here's the image link in Amazing Images: http://uplink.space.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=amazingimg&Number=830360&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=0&fpart=1&vc=1#Post830360 <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>