COMMISSION 27 OF THE I. A. U.
         INFORMATION BULLETIN ON VARIABLE STARS
                      NUMBER 368

                                  Konkoly Observatory
                                  Budapest
                                  1969 July 31


            A NOVA IN CORONA AUSTRALIS

      On objective-prism plates, taken about two years
ago with the Curtis Schmidt telescope on Cerro Tololo, we
have just discovered a star showing the spectrum of a nova
in the early nebular stage of development. The approximate
1900-coordinates are: RA = 18h18m0, D = -37deg03', l^II = 356.9deg,
b^II = 11.1deg.
      The visually estimated relative strengths of the
emission lines are given below along with the data describing
the plates. No direct plates are available.

	                [FIGURE 1]

30 June 1967, IIaO, 11m exp.     30 July 1967, 103aF+GG14, 9m exp.
   580 A mm-1 at H_gamma            1000 A mm^-1 at H_alpha

lambda Int.  lambda  Int.               lambda    Int.
5007    5     4363    10                H_alpha    10
4959    2    H_gamma  "                   5755      2
H_beta  5    H_delta   5                  5007      5
4686    2    H_epsilon 2                  4959      2
4640    5    H_zeta    1


     We estimate that on 30 June 1967 the star had m_pg
about 13. According to the criteria given by McLaughlin (1),
the spectrum at that time should correspond to a development
stage about 5 magnitudes down from maximum light. Thus
we presume that the nova attained about the 8th magnitude
several months prior to our observations. Our two charts
(an enlargement of the insert is on the right) identify the
best candidate as the prenova which appears on the Palomar
Survey southern extension chart 8626. We estimate the red
magnitude to be about 17 which would give the nova a total
range of about 9 magnitudes.



                           N. SANDULEAK
                    Warner and Swasey Observatory
                       East Cleveland, Ohio





McLaughlin, D. B., Stellar Atmospheres ed. J. L. Greenstein
(Chicago: University of Chicago Press), chap. 17. [BIBCODE 1960stat.conf..585M ]