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FLUX ROPE FORMATION PRECEDING CORONAL MASS EJECTION ONSET

Journal Article · · Astrophysical Journal (Online)
We analyze the evolution of a sigmoidal (S-shaped) active region toward eruption, which includes a coronal mass ejection (CME) but leaves part of the filament in place. The X-ray sigmoid is found to trace out three different magnetic topologies in succession: a highly sheared arcade of coronal loops in its long-lived phase, a bald-patch separatrix surface (BPSS) in the hours before the CME, and the first flare loops in its major transient intensity enhancement. The coronal evolution is driven by photospheric changes which involve the convergence and cancellation of flux elements under the sigmoid and filament. The data yield unambiguous evidence for the existence of a BPSS, and hence a flux rope, in the corona prior to the onset of the CME.
OSTI ID:
21313810
Journal Information:
Astrophysical Journal (Online), Journal Name: Astrophysical Journal (Online) Journal Issue: 2 Vol. 700; ISSN 1538-4357
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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