Circular No. 8527
Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION
Mailstop 18, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Cambridge, MA 02138, U.S.A.
IAUSUBS@CFA.HARVARD.EDU or FAX 617-495-7231 (subscriptions)
CBAT@CFA.HARVARD.EDU (science)
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Phone 617-495-7440/7244/7444 (for emergency use only)


V378 SERPENTIS
     R. W. Russell, D. K. Lynch, and R. J. Rudy, The Aerospace
Corporation, obtained a 0.8-5.0-micron spectrogram of V378 Ser (cf.
IAUC 8505, 8506) on Apr. 18.7 UT using the Infrared Telescope
Facility (+ SpeX).  The object showed a large number of symmetric,
Gaussian-like emission lines (2700 km/s FWHM).  H I dominated the
spectrum with lines of the Pa, Br, Pf, and Hu series.  He I was
surprisingly weak, the 1.0830-micron line being about a third of
the equivalent width of Paschen_gamma.  No evidence was found of
the CO 2.3- or 4.6-micron bands.  Reddening determined from the O I
lines was E(B-V) = 0.74. There was no indication of thermal
emission from dust.


SUPERNOVAE 2005bi, 2005bu, AND 2005bz
     Further to IAUC 8523, K. Shimasaki and W. Li report the LOSS
discovery of an apparent supernova on unfiltered KAIT images taken
on Apr. 29.51 (at mag 19.1) and May 12.44 UT (mag 19.0).  SN 2005bz
is located at R.A. = 18h13m01s.73, Decl. = +29o41'51".5 (equinox
2000.0), which is 1".0 east and 4".4 north of the nucleus of UGC
11162.  KAIT images taken on 2004 Aug. 19.31 (limiting mag 20.0)
and 2005 Apr. 22.50 (limiting mag 19.0) showed nothing at this
position.
     A. V. Filippenko, R. J. Foley, D. Pooley, and R. Chornock,
University of California, Berkeley, report that inspection of CCD
spectra (range 320-930 nm), obtained on May 11 UT with the Keck I
10-m telescope (+ LRIS), shows that SN 2005bi (IAUC 8511) is of
type II, perhaps 1.5-2 months after the explosion.  Lines of H I,
Fe II, Ca II, and other species are present -- in most or all
cases with well-developed P-Cyg profiles.  Spectra of SN 2005bu
(IAUC 8519) show it to be of type Ia, roughly 3-4 weeks past
maximum brightness.


COMET C/1996 N3 (SOHO)
     Another tailless SOHO comet (continuation to IAUC 8525):

 Comet       1996 UT       R.A.(2000)Decl.  Inst.  F    MPEC
 C/1996 N3   July 3.383    6 44.8  +22 19    C2/3  RK   2005-H24

K. Battams writes that C/1996 N3 was one of the brightest Meyer-
group comets that he has seen (reaching mag 5.7 in C2 images on
July 3.608 UT at 4.0 solar radii), and it didn't fade noticeably
until well past perihelion.

                      (C) Copyright 2005 CBAT
2005 May 12                    (8527)            Daniel W. E. Green