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The eruption of a small-scale emerging flux rope as the driver of an M-class flare and of a coronal mass ejection

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Priest_2017_AJ_EmergingFluxRope_FinalPubVersion.pdf (14.39Mb)
Date
10/08/2017
Author
Yan, X. L.
Jiang, C. W.
Xue, Z. K.
Wang, J. C.
Priest, E. R.
Yang, L. H.
Kong, D. F.
Cao, W. D.
Ji, H. S.
Keywords
Sun: activity
Sun: coronal mass ejections (CMEs)
Sun: flares
Sun: magnetic fields
Sun: photosphere sunspots
QB Astronomy
QC Physics
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Space and Planetary Science
NDAS
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Abstract
Solar flares and coronal mass ejections are the most powerful explosions in the Sun. They are major sources of potentially destructive space weather conditions. However, the possible causes of their initiation remain controversial. Using high-resolution data observed by the New Solar Telescope of Big Bear Solar Observatory, supplemented by Solar Dynamics Observatory observations, we present unusual observations of a small-scale emerging flux rope near a large sunspot, whose eruption produced an M-class flare and a coronal mass ejection. The presence of the small-scale flux rope was indicated by static nonlinear force-free field extrapolation as well as data-driven magnetohydrodynamics modeling of the dynamic evolution of the coronal three-dimensional magnetic field. During the emergence of the flux rope, rotation of satellite sunspots at the footpoints of the flux rope was observed. Meanwhile, the Lorentz force, magnetic energy, vertical current, and transverse fields were increasing during this phase. The free energy from the magnetic flux emergence and twisting magnetic fields is sufficient to power the M-class flare. These observations present, for the first time, the complete process, from the emergence of the small-scale flux rope, to the production of solar eruptions.
Citation
Yan , X L , Jiang , C W , Xue , Z K , Wang , J C , Priest , E R , Yang , L H , Kong , D F , Cao , W D & Ji , H S 2017 , ' The eruption of a small-scale emerging flux rope as the driver of an M-class flare and of a coronal mass ejection ' , Astrophysical Journal , vol. 845 , no. 1 , 18 . https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/aa7e29
Publication
Astrophysical Journal
Status
Peer reviewed
DOI
https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/aa7e29
ISSN
0004-637X
Type
Journal article
Rights
© 2017 The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. This work is made available online in accordance with the publisher’s policies. This is the final published version of the work, which was originally published at: https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/aa7c29
Description
This work is sponsored by the National Science Foundation of China (NSFC) under the grant numbers 11373066, 11603071, 11503080, 11633008, 11533008, by the Key Laboratory of Solar Activity of CAS under numbers KLSA201603, KLSA201508, by the Yunnan Science Foundation of China under number 2013FB086, CAS "Light of West China" Program, by the Youth Innovation Promotion Association CAS (No.2011056), and the national basic research program of China (973 program, 2011CB811400). The BBSO operation is supported by NJIT, US NSF AGS-1250818, and NASA NNX13AG14G grants, and the NST operation is partly supported by the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute and Seoul National University and by the strategic priority research program of CAS with Grant No. XDB09000000.
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  • University of St Andrews Research
URL
https://arxiv.org/abs/1707.00073
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/10023/11761

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