Eruptive Prominence Triggered by New Emerging Flux

Jun Lin

Abstract

Newly emerging flux may play an important role in triggering solar flares, coronal mass ejections, and prominence eruptions.  A few years ago, Feynman & Martin (JGR, Vol. 100, 3355, 1995) reported that the likelihood of a prominence eruption (or CME) is enhanced by the appearance of newly emerging flux in the vicinity of the prominence. They also found that there is a correlation between eruption and the magnetic polarity of the emerging region provided that the newly emerging flux is not too close to the prominence. In the present work, we investigate how the emergence of new flux affects the stability of a coronal flux rope. The results show that the newly emerging flux can trigger an eruption of the flux rope, but only under certain circumstances.  Although the model results generally agree with the observations of Feynman & Martin , they also suggest that the actual circumstances leading to an eruption are sensitive not only to the polarity of the emergin! g region but also to several other parameters, such as the strength, distance, and area of the emerging region.

    Authors: J. Lin, T. G. Forbes, and P. A. Isenberg

  Organization: EOS & Department of Physics
     Telephone: (603) 862-3873
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        e-mail: jun.lin@unh.edu
       Address: Space Science Center
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   University of New Hampshire
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