Coronal mass ejection transients observed with the white light coronagraph on Skylab are found to be associated with several other forms of solar activity. There is a strong correlation between such mass ejection transients and chromospheric Ha activity, with three-quarters of the transients apparently ...... o/ originating m or near active regions. We infer that 4(1~ of transients are associated with flares, 30 ,o are associated with eruptive prominences solely (without flares), and more than 70~ are associated with eruptive prominences or filament disappearances (with or without flares). Nine of ten flares which displayed apparent mass ejections of Ha-emitting material from the flare site could be associated with coronal transients. Within each class of activity, the more energetic events are more likely to be associated with an observable mass ejection.

The white light coronagraph data from Skylab is used to investigate the equatorial and polar K and F coronal components during the declining phase of the solar cycle near solar minimum. Measurements of coronal brightness and polarization brightness product between 2.5 and 5.5R.) during the period of observation (May 1973 to February 1974 lead to the conclusions that: (1) the equatorial corona is dominated by either streamers or coronal holes seen in projections on the limb approximately 50% and 30% of the time, respectively; (2) despite the domination by streamers and holes, two periods of time were found which were free from the influences of streamers or holes (neither streamers nor holes were within 30 ~ in longitude of the limb); (3) the derived equatorial background density model is less than 15% below the minimum equatorial models of Newkirk (1967) and Saito (1970); (4) a spherically symmetric density model for equatorial coronal holes yields densities one half those of the background density model; and (5) the inferred brightness of the F-corona is constant to within + 10% and +5% for the equatorial and polar values, respectively, over the observation period. While the F-corona is symmetric at 2Ro it begins to show increasing asymmetry beyond this radius such that at 5Ro the equatorial F-coronal brightness is 25% greater than the polar brightness.

More than 30 instances of sudden mass ejections from the sun were observed with the white light coronagraph experiment aboard Skylab during the first 118 days of the mission. Typically, these ejections appear as large magnetic loops rooted at the sun, yet expanding outward through the solar corona at speeds of the order of 400 km s−1. The loops always appear to retain their magnetic connection to the sun. Eighteen of these ejections were associated with active and eruptive prominences and surges; only three ejections appear to have been flare initiated. Associations with ground‐detected metric wavelength type 2 and 4 radio bursts occur for about 30% of these events; however, ground‐detected type 2 and 4 radio bursts originating near the limb are almost invariably accompanied by coronagraph‐observed ejections. Pressure or MHD waves run out ahead of the transient material ejecta; at times these waves can be detected by their effects on nearby coronal structures. For one event, that of August 10, 1973, we make the following estimates: (1) mass content, 4 × 1015 grams; (2) mass flow rate, 1.1 × 1012 grams s−1; (3) energy content, 8.4 × 1030 ergs; and (4) energy flow rate, 7.7 × 1026 ergs s−1. Locally, this represents a significant mass and energy input to the solar wind; we suggest that the ejections are the coronal counterparts of nonrecurrent (including shocks) solar wind disturbances detected near the orbit of the earth.