itle:

                Improved Distance Determination to SN 1987A and the LMC
 Authors:

                Panagia, N.; Gilmozzi, R.; Kirshner, R. P.; Pun, C. S. J.; Sonneborn, G.; SINS Collaboration
 Affiliation:

                AA(STScI/ESA), AB(ESO), AC(CfA-Harvard), AD(GSFC)
 Journal:

                American Astronomical Society Meeting, 191, #19.09
 Publication Date:

                12/1997
 Origin:

                AAS
 Abstract Copyright:

                (c) 1997: American Astronomical Society
 Bibliographic Code:

                1997AAS...191.1909P


                                         Abstract

Using the new reductions of the IUE light curves by Sonneborn et al (1997, ApJ, 477, 848) and an extensive set of HST images of SN 1987A
we have repeated and improved Panagia et al (1991, ApJ, 380, L23) analysis to obtain a better determination of the distance to the
supernova. In this way we have derived an absolute size of the ring R_{abs} = (6.17 +/- 0.18) x 10(17) cm and an angular size R(") = 808
+/- 17 mas, which give a distance to the supernova d(SN1987A) = 50.9 +/- 1.8 kpc and a distance modulus m-M(SN1987A) = 18.53 +/-
0.08. Allowing for a displacement of SN 1987A position relative to the LMC center, the distance to the barycenter of the Large Magellanic
Cloud is also estimated to be d(LMC)=51.5+/-1.9 kpc, which corresponds to a distance modulus of m-M(LMC) = 18.56 +/- 0.08.