------------------------------------------------------------------- THE ASTRONOMER Electronic Circular No 2592 2009 Oct 22 13.59UT 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 ------------------------------------------------------------------- SUPERNOVA 2009ka IN ANONYMOUS GALAXY On 2009 October 19 an e-mail was received from Tom Boles of Coddenham Suffolk, England reporting that he had recorded a suspected magnitude 17.5 supernova in an anonymous galaxy during searches for the UK Nova/Supernova Patrol. The object had initially been imaged on an unfiltered exposure of 2009 Oct 18.898UT using a 0.35-m Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope. It is located at: RA 21h 17m 35.77s DEC +26 01' 12.0" (2000), approximately 13.5"W and 12.5"N of the centre of the host galaxy which itself is positioned at: RA 21h 17m 36.78s DEC +26 00' 59.5" (2000). Nothing is present at this position on Tom's images og 2009 Aug 13 and 29 (limiting mag 19.5) nor on Digitised Sky Survey Plates from 1991 Sept 8 (limiting red mag 20.5), and 1995 July 29 (limiting blue mag 21.0). In a later e-mail from Tom he reported that he had managed to record multiple (15) confirmation images of the apparent supernova on Oct 19.777UT and measurements produced end figures of: RA 35.80s DEC 11.9". The object was announced in CBET 1985 with a designation of SN 2009ka. Congratulations to Tom on the discovery of his 126th supernova. ORIONID METEORS 2009 P. Jenniskens, SETI Institute, reports on CBET 1987 that the current elevated rate of Orionids above their normal 23 meteors/hr zenith hourly rate (ZHR), and a higher-than-normal abundance of relatively bright meteors (magnitude -2 to -7), is likely to continue for another 1-2 days. The International Meteor Organization reports rates of ZHR = 32 meteors/hr on Oct. 21.5 UT, possibly still climbing. Y. K. Chia, observing from Singapore, first noticed high rates of bright Orionids on Oct. 19.8. Javor Kac, observing from Veliki Raven in Slovenia, reported high Orionid rates on Oct. 20.1, the brightest of which was of magnitude -7. This outburst was predicted (see TA E-Circular 2591) by M. Sato and J.-I. Watanabe and is thought to be due to dust particles ejected by comet 1P/Halley in the years prior to -11 and now moving in the 1:5 to 1:8 mean-motion resonances with Jupiter, creating a "filament" dust cloud typical of Halley-type comets. SUPERNOVA 2009it IN NGC 6841 Discovery by the CHASE Project of a possible supernova (CBET 1933): SN 2009 UT R.A. (2000.0) Decl. Mag. Offset 2009it Aug 31.00 19 57 48.68 -31 48 35.4 16.3 4.2"W, 2.9"N SUPERNOVA 2009iu IN NGC 7329 Discovery by the CHASE Project of a possible supernova (CBET 1937): SN 2009 UT R.A. (2000.0) Decl. Mag. Offset 2009ju Sep 1.01 22 40 10.35 -66 28 06.4 15.5 82.8"W,38.9"N It was also recorded on Sept. 2.01UT at magnitude 15.4. The type-Ia supernova 2006bh also appeared in this galaxy Guy M Hurst