Hydrogen and hydroxyl production rates of Comet Tago-Sato-Kosaka (1969 IX).

Comet Tago-Sato-Kosaka (1969 IX) was observed with the ultraviolet photometers on OAO 2 from January 16.41 to January 29.89, 1970, while its heliocentric distance increased from 0.78 to 1.03 AU. The production rates of hydrogen and hydroxyl are derived from Lyman-alpha (1216 A) and OH (0-0) band (3090 A) emission. The variations of the hydrogen and hydroxyl production ran parallel to one another, while their ratio was about 3:1. These results are consistent with the assumption that vaporization of water ice controlled the production rate of gas during this interval. The hydrogen production rates of four nonperiodic comets are compared.