Distances of the Virgo and Coma clusters of galaxies through Novae and Supernovae

A distance modulus equal to 31.30 + or - 0.40 mag for the Virgo Cluster is estimated from a revised calibration of the maximum-magnitude versus rate-of-decline relation applied to the photometry of seven novae discovered by Pritchet and van den Bergh. The distance of the Coma Cluster is then evaluated in units of the Virgo Cluster distance, equal to 3.75 + or - 0.20, by comparing the critically revised maximum-magnitudes for the Type Ia supernovae. From there, a value of 70 + or - 15 km/s Mpc is derived for the Hubble constant as well as a Virgocentric infall velocity of 318 + or - 150 km/s.