| Abstract
| - We present our findings on a supernova (SN) impostor, SNHunt248, based on optical and near-IR data spanning ~15 yr before discovery, to ~1 yr post-discovery. The light curve displays three distinct peaks, the brightest of which is at MR ~ −15.0 mag. The post-discovery evolution is consistent with the ejecta from the outburst interacting with two distinct regions of circumstellar material. The 0.5-2.2 μm spectral energy distribution at −740 d is well-matched by a single 6700 K blackbody with log ( L/ L⊙) ~ 6.1 . This temperature and luminosity support previous suggestions of a yellow hypergiant progenitor; however, we find it to be brighter than the brightest and most massive Galactic late-F to early-G spectral type hypergiants. Overall the historical light curve displays variability of up to ~ ± 1 mag. At current epochs ( ~1 yr post-outburst), the absolute magnitude ( MR ~ − 9 mag) is just below the faintest observed historical absolute magnitude ~10 yr before discovery.
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