------------------------------------------------------------------- THE ASTRONOMER Electronic Circular No 2686 2010 Nov 09 16.37UT 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 ------------------------------------------------------------------- OCCULTATION BY (136199) ERIS Jose L. Ortiz, et. al., Instituto de Astrofisica de Andalucia, Spain, report that the occultation of a star of magnitude V about 17 by the dwarf planet (136199) Eris has been successfully recorded from their remotely-operated 0.4-m ASH2 telescope at S. Pedro de Atacama Celestial Explorations Observatory in Chile. The event started on 2010 Nov. 6d02h18m39s +/- 7 seconds and lasting for 67 +/- 15 seconds. These observations confirm that the shadow path of the event drifted southward of most of the latest predictions. E. Jehin, et. al., also report that they observed an occultation of a star of magnitude I about 15.2 by the dwarf planet Eris (then at V about18.7) on Nov. 6 using the new telescope TRAPPIST at the European Southern Observatory (La Silla). TRAPPIST is a project driven by the University of Liege, in close collaboration with the Observatory of Geneva, supported by the Belgian Fund for Scientific Research and the Swiss National Science Foundation. A series of 3-s exposures of a field of size 3' x 3' (1".3/pixel) were secured in fast-readout mode, starting at 01h50m UT for one hour. Seven frames centred at 02h19m34s UT allowed them to derive the start of the occultation as 02h19m16s.75 +/- 0s.75 and the end as 02h19m47s.6 +/- 0s.2, for a total occultation time of 30.4 +/- 1.0 seconds. The predictions made by the Rio de Janeiro group (Assafin et al., Nov. 5) and by J. L. Ortiz estimated the time of the occultation around 02h18m UT for Chile, in good agreement with the observations. During the occultation, a point source is detected with a magnitude corresponding to that of Eris. A small flux increase was also seen at the middle of the occultation, which might result from refraction in Eris' atmosphere. Eris is by far the most-remote solar-system object observed to date via stellar occultation, with a geocentric distance of about 96 AU. SUPERNOVA 2010hw IN UGC 10685 Discovery by LOSS of a possible supernova (CBET 2458): SN 2010 UT R.A. (2000.0) Decl. Mag. Offset 2010hw Sep 12.17 17 04 50.19 +12 55 36.4 19.1 10.2"W, 6.7"N SUPERNOVA 2010hx IN NGC 3258 Discovery by Berto Monard of a possible supernova (CBET 2460): SN 2010 UT R.A. (2000.0) Decl. Mag. Offset 2010hx Sep 16.122 10 28 51.06 -35 36 22.3 15.3 31 "W, 2.3"S SUPERNOVA 2010hy NEAR UGC 11385 Discovery by LOSS of a possible supernova (CBET 2461): SN 2010 UT R.A. (2000.0) Decl. Mag. Offset 2010hy Sep 4.19 18 59 32.89 +19 24 25.9 19.1 50 "W, 73 "S Although near UGC 11385 the spectrum suggests the parent to be a background galaxy. S. B. Cenko et.al., report CCD spectra obtained on Sept. 16 UT with the 3-m Shane reflector shows it to be Ic or perhaps Ia. Guy M Hurst