THEORETICAL HE-I LINE-INTENSITIES IN GASEOUS NEBULAE - NGC-1976, NGC-6572 AND IC-4997

Smits has recently calculated theoretical He I intensities for a large number of lines for conditions appropriate to gaseous nebulae. These are likely to remain the definitive calculations for some time to come . A comparison of these line ratios with observed values in three nebu lae reveals some discrepancies. We show that these discrepancies are r educed when collisional effects from the metastable 2(3)S level are in cluded, and that it is not necessary to invoke an unknown depopulation mechanism for the He I 2(3)S level.