-------------------------------------------------------------------
THE ASTRONOMER Electronic Circular No 2454      2008 Jun 08 16.34UT
Ed:Guy M Hurst, 16,Westminster Close, Kempshott Rise,  Basingstoke,
Hants, RG22 4PP,England.Telephone/FAX(01256)471074Int:+441256471074
INTERNET: GUY@TAHQ.DEMON.CO.UK      Backup: gmh@wdcc1.bnsc.rl.ac.uk
WORLD WIDE WEB                         http://www.theastronomer.org
-------------------------------------------------------------------
V2487 OPHIUCHI ( = NOVA OPHIUCHI 1998)
A. Pagnotta, et. al., Louisiana State University, report on IAUC 8951 
their discovery of a previously unknown eruption of the nova V2487 Oph 
(Nova Oph 1998) in the Harvard College Observatory archival photograph 
collection.

Plate AM505 shows V2487 Oph at B = 10.3 on 1900 June 20.  This is close 
to its peak magnitude in 1998, which was reported to be 9.5 in the more 
recent outburst. They identified V2487 Oph as a strong recurrent nova 
candidate because of its low outburst amplitude, very fast decline rate, 
high expansion velocity, and the presence of high-excitation lines in 
its outburst spectrum.  V2487 Oph
was also identified as a good candidate by Hachisu et al. (2002, ASP 
Conf. Proc. 261, 629), based on characteristics of its light curve. With 
this discovery, V2487 Oph becomes the tenth known galactic recurrent 
nova.

Editor:
If anyone has any images of this nova both near discovery or at other 
times please advise the editor of details.

V2487 Oph     N1998 06 15 RA 17 32.0 DEC -19 14 (2000)

Discovery: mag 9.5  IAUC 6941  by K. Takamizawa

V2670 OPHIUCHI = NOVA OPHIUCHI 2008 No. 1
N. N. Samus, Institute of Astronomy, Moscow, advises that Nova Oph
2008 No 1 (cf. TA E-Circulars 2451, 2452 and EWC 190) is being assigned 
the variable-star designation V2670 Oph.

V2671 OPHIUCHI = NOVA OPHIUCHI 2008 No. 2
N. N. Samus, Institute of Astronomy, Moscow, advises that the
nova reported on TA E-Circular 2453 is being assigned the variable-star 
designation V2671 Oph.

SUPERNOVA 2008S IN NGC 6946
R. Wesson, J. Fabbri, and M. Barlow, University College, London;
and M. Meixner, Space Telescope Science Institute, on behalf of the
'Survey for Evolution of Emission from Dust in Supernovae' (SEEDS) 
collaboration, report on CBET 1381 the detection of the type-IIn 
supernova 2008S, (found by Ron Arbour [TA E-Circular 2416: editor), in 
Spitzer Space Telescope IRAC and MIPS images that were obtained
serendipitously on 2008 Feb. 7 UT, five days after the supernova
outburst, during scheduled observations of the nearby supernova 2002hh 
(cf. IAUC 8005).
SN 2008S is detected at:
RA 20h 34m 45.34a DEC +60 05' 58.0" (2000), in close agreement with the 
optical position (CBET 1234). The measured flux densities in mJy at 3.6, 
4.5, 5.8, 8.0, and 24 microns are 1.7 +/- 0.3, 2.0 +/- 0.3, 2.7 +/- 0.4, 
4.0 +/- 0.4, and 0.4 +/- 0.3, respectively.
This spectral-energy distribution (SED) can be fitted by a 500-K black 
body modified by a dust emissivity that is inversely proportional to 
wavelength, giving a luminosity of 2.1 x 10^6 solar luminosities for a 
distance of 5.6 Mpc to the host galaxy NGC 6946. The progenitor of SN 
2008S was detected in archival Spitzer images by Prieto et al. (2008, 
http://arxiv.org/abs/0803.0324v3), who found that a 440-K blackbody with 
a luminosity of 3 x 10^4 solar luminosities could fit the progenitor's 
infrared SED.

Guy M Hurst