Thu, 01/12/2023 - 02:05
A fairly bright nova has appeared in M31.
Thank you to the AAVSO team a chart, sequence and AUID is available using the name AT 2023ax.
As of 2459954.49 B 16.91 (0.07), V 16.86 (0.10) and Rc 16.45 (0.13).
Jim DeYoung (DEY)
So far we have gotten a fairly decent light curve. The nova is fading fast.
Current extrapolation of time to fall three magnitudes (t2) is about 11 or 12 days. The accepted distance modulus of M-31 is about 24.4 and the nova maximum about 16.5 gives about -7.9 for an uncorrected absolute magnitude for this nova.
Jim DeYoung (DEY)
Though I am a few days late in posting this (I was at AAS and am just now getting to looking at the images I took), I picked up the nova on January 06, (2459951.33179), using a 1-meter telescope (La Palma) and H-alpha filter when it had a magnitude of 17.259 (Ha). S/N of about 32. Nothing visible in images from January 04 and January 05.
AAVSO doesn't have H-alpha as a filter choice so I cannot submit the data.
Tom Rutherford (RTH)
Tom,
The AAVSO has "other" for the filter field and you supply a description in the notes part of the record. Unfortunately, that option appears to be broken right now.
Please let anyone you come across and who are or would be interested in our photometry of AT 2023ax about its availability in the AAVSO db. I don't have a way to upload to the Astronomers Telegram which is where useful quick response photometry like this could go to for publishing in addition to the AAVSO db.
Best regards,
Jim DeYoung
Two more observations of this nova have been uploaded.
t3 is about 19 days.
Last observation using the NSU/UVA 24-inch RRRT telescope CV 19.6 (0.3).
Decent coverage, thanks to all who submitted observations on this object.
Jim DeYoung (DEY)