Program: GN-2008B-DD-6

The recently discovered SN 2008ha in UGC 12682 (D = 20 Mpc) is a remarkable object. It is spectroscopically similar to a class of SNe Ia that do not obey the light-curve shape vs. luminosity relationship that lays the foundation for SN cosmology. Despite having early-time spectra similar to normal SNe Ia, these objects evolve very differently. Furthermore, these objects have low-velocity ejecta (~5000 km/s compared to ~10000 km/s for normal SNe Ia). At late times, the lines shows widths of only a few hundred km/s, deblending the normally smeared forest of lines in SNe Ia spectra, including those of potentially unburned material (which can only be observed when the line velocities are this low). With the handful of examples of this class, we have not detected the typical nebular emission lines at late times - it appears these objects stay optically thick for over a year after explosion. SN 2008ha appears to be an extreme example of this class of objects. Our current estimates place the peak luminosity at M_V = -14.5 mag, making it by far the least luminous SN Ia ever observed. Additionally, our early constraints place the ejecta velocity at only 3000 km/s. These facts indicate that SN 2008ha was severly under-energetic and may not be a "true" supernova (i.e., the progenitor star may not have been destroyed). We will continue to monitor SN 2008ha optically with the 1.2 and 1.5 m telescopes at FLWO, but it will soon be too faint. We request weekly monitoring of SN 2008ha with NIRI to measure its NIR light curves, allowing a determination of its bolometric luminosity, and thus a look at the total energetics of the explosion. We also request a GMOS spectrum when it comes back from behind the sun in June to compare this object to others in the class and to make the best attempt yet to look for unburned material in a SN Ia.