Fabry-Perot observations of comet Kohoutek

Abstract

Observations of H alpha, H20(+), and emission lines from comet Kohoutek were made. Analyses of H alpha line profiles and line intensities indicate that the mean outflow velocity of the hydrogen atoms was 7.8 + or - 0.2 km s(-1) and that the hydrogen atom production rate varied for comet-sun distances between 1 AU and 0.4 AU. The identification of an H20(+) emission feature in certain H alpha scans indicates that the H20(+) ions were moving in a tailward direction with a velocity of 20 to 40 km s(-1) with respect to the comet nucleus. An upper limit of 1 part in 100 was found for the D/H ratio in the cometary atomic hydrogen cloud