  B-band light-curve rise times for eight unusually well-observed nearby Type
Ia supernovae (SNe) are fitted by a newly developed template-building
algorithm, using light-curve functions that are smooth, flexible, and free of
potential bias from externally derived templates and other prior assumptions.
  From the available literature, photometric BVRI data collected over many
months, including the earliest points, are reconciled, combined, and fitted to
a unique time of explosion for each SN. On average, after they are corrected
for light-curve decline rate, three SNe rise in 18.81 +- 0.36 days, while five
SNe rise in 16.64 +- 0.21 days. If all eight SNe are sampled from a single
parent population (a hypothesis not favored by statistical tests), the rms
intrinsic scatter of the decline-rate-corrected SN rise time is 0.96 +0.52
-0.25 days -- a first measurement of this dispersion. The corresponding global
mean rise time is 17.44 +- 0.39 days, where the uncertainty is dominated by
intrinsic variance. This value is ~2 days shorter than two published averages
that nominally are twice as precise, though also based on small samples. When
comparing high-z to low-z SN luminosities for determining cosmological
parameters, bias can be introduced by use of a light-curve template with an
unrealistic rise time. If the period over which light curves are sampled
depends on z in a manner typical of current search and measurement strategies,
a two-day discrepancy in template rise time can bias the luminosity comparison
by ~0.03 magnitudes.
