SPECTROPHOTOMETRY OF THE CONDENSATIONS AROUND ETA CARINAE

Ionic abundances of N, O, S, and He are presented for the ES, E5, and NS condensations around Eta Carinae. The spectra$\sp1$ show strong (NII) $\lambda\lambda$6548,6583 while (OII) $\lambda$3727 is weak and (OIII) $\lambda$5007 is not clearly observed. Analysis is complicated by large velocity dispersions (250-750 km/sec) and spatial ionization variations. However, the (NII) and (SII) lines imply electron temperatures of about 10-20 $\times$ 10$\sp3$K and electron densities of 2-3 $\times$ 10$\sp3$cm$\sp{-3}$ (except NS). The source of ionization is not understood, but shock ionization may have a major role. Elemental abundances are not generally obtainable; however, an ionization curve similar to that of the S condensation would imply N(He)/N(H) = 0.14 $\pm$ 0.03 (for the condensations). The helium and nitrogen enrichments show that Eta Carinae is ejecting nuclear processed material. ftn$\sp1$Observations made by R. J. Dufour, visiting astronomer Cerro Tololo Interamerican Observatory, on 1984 March 15 and 16 using the 1.5m telescope with SIT vidicon