------------------------------------------------------------------- THE ASTRONOMER Electronic Circular No 2519 2009 Jan 18 13.42UT 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 ------------------------------------------------------------------- CHRISTMAS QUIZ We have yet to receive an all-correct set of answers to the quiz issued on TA E-Circular 2512 though we are grateful for all those who have entered to date. Accordingly the deadline has been extended until January 31. If no all-correct response has been received by then, the award will go to the earliest and highest scorer. Naturally the editor cannot supply clues but it is in order to e-mail us to ask which numbered answers were incorrect in your original entry and to re-submit your response. SUPERNOVA 2008il IN ESO 355-G4 Discovery by the CHASE project of a possible supernova (CBET 1634): SN 2008 UT R.A. (2000.0) Decl. Mag. Offset 2008il Dec. 27.14 02 17 53 -34 47 53.4 16.5 23.1"W,18.9"N M. Stritzinger, Las Campanas Observatory reports that a spectrum of Dec. 28.1 UT shows it to be a young type-II supernova, very similar to SN 1999em and SN 2004et around a week past explosion. SUPERNOVA 2008im IN PGC 14286 Discovery by Mikko Paivinen (Finland) of a possible supernova (CBET 1635): SN 2008 UT R.A. (2000.0) Decl. Mag. Offset 2008im Dec. 26.67 04 01 02.15 +74 05 48.5 17.3 50 "N An image of 2008im by Oksanen is posted at the following website URL: http://murtoinen.dyndns.org/ccd/Arto/pgc14286/PGC14286.jpg. SUPERNOVA 2008in IN MESSIER 61 Discovery by Koichi Itagaki (Japan) of a possible supernova (CBET 1636): SN 2008 UT R.A. (2000.0) Decl. Mag. Offset 2008in Dec. 26.79 12 22 01.77 +04 28 47.5 14.9 102 "E,22 "N Nothing is visible at this location on the discoverer's frame taken on 2000 Mar. 27 (limiting magnitude 19.0). K. Kadota (Ageo, Japan), 0.25-m f/5 reflector) found mag 15.1 and position end figures 01s.77,48".3 from an unfiltered CCD image taken on 2008 Dec. 27.680 (limiting mag 17.7). SN 2006ov also appeared in this galaxy (cf. CBET 756, 757; also discovered by Itagaki). S. Chakraborti, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai et. al., report that 2008in is a type-IIP supernova. Medium-resolution slit spectroscopy of Dec. 29.00 UT shows it similar to SN 2005cs at age 1.0 days past maximum (age from explosion 7.0 days). The spectrum also similar to that of SN 1999em at 1.6 days before maximum (age from explosion 8.3 days). Guy M Hurst