Complete replacement of magnetic flux in a flux rope during a coronal mass ejection [SSA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.03217


Solar coronal mass ejections are the most energetic events in the Solar System. In their standard formation model, a magnetic flux rope builds up into a coronal mass ejection through magnetic reconnection that continually converts overlying, untwisted magnetic flux into twisted flux enveloping the pre-existing rope. However, only a minority of coronal mass ejections carry a coherent magnetic flux rope as their core structure, which casts doubt on the universality of this orderly wrapping process. Here we provide observational evidence of a different formation and eruption mechanism of a magnetic flux rope from an S-shaped thread, where its magnetic flux is fully replaced via flare reconnections. One of the footpoints of the sigmoidal feature slipped and expanded during the formation, and then moved to a completely new place, associated with the highly dynamical evolution of flare ribbons and a twofold increase in magnetic flux through the footpoint, during the eruption. Such a configuration is not predicted by standard formation models or numerical simulations and highlights the three-dimensional nature of magnetic reconnections between the flux rope and the surrounding magnetic field.

Read this paper on arXiv…

T. Gou, R. Liu, A. Veronig, et. al.
Mon, 8 May 23
38/63

Comments: N/A