Circular No. 8907 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) URL http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/iau/cbat.html ISSN 0081-0304 Phone 617-495-7440/7244/7444 (for emergency use only) V459 VULPECULAE = NOVA VULPECULAE 2007 No. 2 S. Nakano, Sumoto, Japan, reports the discovery by Hiroshi Kaneda (Sapporo, Japan) of an apparent nova (mag 8.7) on three 4-s unfiltered CCD frames taken on 2007 Dec. 25.35 UT using a Nikon D40 digital camera (+ 105-mm f/2.5 lens), with an apparent independent discovery made by A. Tago at mag 8.3 on his two patrol frames taken on Dec. 26.38 using a Canon 20D digital camera (+ Pentax 105-mm f/3.2 lens). Nakano's measurement of the variable from Tago's image yielded the position R.A. = 19h48m08s.81, Decl. = +21o15'29".9 (equinox 2000.0) and mag 7.8. Additional CCD magnitudes: Dec. 8, [10-11 (Kaneda); 26.342, 7.1 (K. Itagaki, Yamagata, Japan, 0.60-m f/5.7 reflector; position end figures 08s.84, 27".6); 26.355, 7.7 (Kaneda; position end figures 08s.89, 26".8). Kaneda and K. Kadota (Ageo, Japan) note that a USNO-B1.0- catalogue star has position end figures 08s.871, 26".81 and mag about 20. Spectroscopy by numerous observers, as reported by H. Yamaoka and U. Munari on CBETs 1181 and 1183, confirm the object as a nova. Visual magnitude estimates for V459 Vul by A. Pereira, Cabo da Roca, Portugal: Dec. 26.79, 8.0; 27.79, 7.7; 30.80, 7.9. V723 CASSIOPEIAE S. Mazuk, R. J. Rudy, D. K. Lynch, A. M. Gilbert, and T. R. Prater, The Aerospace Corporation; R. B. Perry, Langley Research Center, NASA; R. C. Puetter, University of California, San Diego; G. Schwarz, West Chester University; and C. E. Woodward, University of Minnesota, report 0.47- to 2.5-micron spectroscopy of V723 Cas (cf. IAUC 8676) on 2007 Dec. 15 UT using VNIRIS on the Lick 3-m telescope. This long-lived, super-soft x-ray source is faint but has retained its high-excitation spectrum, showing emission lines of [Fe X], [Fe XI], and C VI. M31N 2007-12b Rudy, Lynch, Prater, Mazuk, Gilbert, Puetter, and Perry report that spectroscopy, obtained as above, of the apparent nova 2007-12b in M31 (cf. http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/iau/CBAT_M31.html) on 2007 Dec. 15 UT shows a remarkably bright H_alpha line of very high equivalent width. Owing to the low signal-to-noise ratio on this faint object, no continuum was detectable, and the only other emission lines seen were Paschen beta, gamma, delta, and He I 1.0830-microns. The FWHM of these lines were about 5000 km/s -- notably broad for a nova. The FWZI of H_alpha was about 6800 km/s. (C) Copyright 2007 CBAT 2008 January 1 (8907) Daniel W. E. Green