Magnetic reconnection in sheared solar magnetic arcades
The evolution of solar magnetic arcades is investigated with the use of MHD simulations imposing resistivity on sheared magnetic fields. It is found that there is a critical amount of shear, over which magnetic reconnection can take place in an arcade-like field geometry to create a magnetic island. The process leading to reconnection cannot be solely attributed to a tearing instability, but rather to a reactive evolution of the magnetic arcade under resistivity. The natures of the arcade reconnection are governed by the spatial pattern of resistivity. A fast reconnection with a small shock angle can only be achieved when the diffusion region is localized. In this case, a highly collimated reconnection outflow can tear the plasmoid into a pair, and most of principal features in solar eruptive processes are reproduced.
- Research Organization:
- Princeton Plasma Physics Lab. (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Energy Research, Washington, DC (United States); National Science Foundation, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC02-76CH03073
- OSTI ID:
- 468503
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9608196-1; ON: DE97005301; IN: CFP--3689; CNN: Grant No. ATM-9531711
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 7. Asian-Pacific regional meeting of the IAU, Pusan (Korea, Republic of), 19-23 Aug 1996; Other Information: PBD: [1996]
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Solar flare mechanism based on magnetic arcade reconnection and island merging
The plasmoid instability during asymmetric inflow magnetic reconnection