Erupting Flux Rope Research Articles

The Triple-layered Leading Edge of Solar Coronal Mass Ejections

Abstract In a high-resolution, 3D resistive magnetohydrodynamic simulation of an eruptive magnetic flux rope (MFR), we revisit the detailed 3D magnetic structure of a coronal mass ejection (CME). Our results highlight that there exists a helical current ribbon/boundary (HCB) that wraps around the CME bubble. This HCB results from the interaction between the CME bubble and the ambient magnetic field, where it represents a tangential discontinuity in the magnetic topology. Its helical shape is ultimately caused by the kinking of the MFR that resides within the CME bubble. In synthetic Solar Dynamics Observatory/Atmospheric Imaging Assembly images, processed to logarithmic scale to enhance otherwise unobservable features, we show a clear triple-layered leading edge: a bright fast shock front, followed by a bright HCB, and within it a bright MFR. These are arranged in sequence and expand outward continuously. For kink unstable eruptions, we suggest that the HCB is a possible explanation for the bright leading edges seen near CME bubbles and also for the non-wave component of global EUV disturbances.

Microwave Spectral Imaging of an Erupting Magnetic Flux Rope: Implications for the Standard Solar Flare Model in Three Dimensions

Abstract We report microwave spectral imaging observations of an erupting magnetic flux rope during the early impulsive phase of the X8.2-class limb flare on 2017 September 10, obtained by the Expanded Owens Valley Solar Array. A few days prior to the eruption, when viewed against the disk, the flux rope appeared as a reverse S-shaped dark filament along the magnetic polarity inversion line. During the eruption, the rope exhibited a “hot channel” structure in extreme ultraviolet and soft X-ray passbands sensitive to ∼10 MK plasma. The central portion of the flux rope was nearly aligned with the line of sight, which quickly developed into a teardrop-shaped dark cavity during the early phase of the eruption. A long and thin plasma sheet formed below the cavity, interpreted as the reconnection current sheet viewed edge on. A nonthermal microwave source was present at the location of the central current sheet, which extended upward encompassing the dark cavity. A pair of nonthermal microwave sources were observed for several minutes on both sides of the main flaring region. They shared a similar temporal behavior and spectral property to the central microwave source below the cavity, interpreted as the conjugate footpoints of the erupting flux rope. These observations are broadly consistent with the magnetic topology and the associated energy release scenario suggested in the three-dimensional standard model for eruptive solar flares. In particular, our detection of nonthermal emission at conjugate flux rope footpoints provides solid evidence of particle transport along an erupting magnetic flux rope.

Particle Acceleration and Transport during 3D CME Eruptions

Abstract We calculate particle acceleration during coronal mass ejection (CME) eruptions using combined magnetohydrodynamic and test-particle models. The 2.5D/3D CMEs are generated via the breakout mechanism. In this scenario a reconnection at the “breakout” current sheet (CS) above the flux rope initiates the CME eruption by destabilizing a quasi-static force balance. Reconnection at the flare CS below the erupting flux rope drives the fast acceleration of the CME, which forms flare loops below and produces the energetic particles observed in flares. For test-particle simulations, two times are selected during the impulsive and decay phases of the eruption. Particles are revealed to be accelerated more efficiently in the flare CS rather than in the breakout CS even in the presence of large magnetic islands. Particles are first accelerated in the CSs (with or without magnetic islands) by the reconnection electric field mainly through particle curvature drift. We find, as expected, that accelerated particles precipitate into the chromosphere, become trapped in the loop top by magnetic mirrors, or escape to interplanetary space along open field lines. Some trapped particles are reaccelerated, either via reinjection to the flare CS or through a local Betatron-type acceleration associated with compression of the magnetic field. The energetic particles produce relatively hard energy spectra during the impulsive phase. During the gradual phase, the relaxation of magnetic field shear reduces the guiding field in the flare CS, which leads to a decrease in particle energization efficiency. Important implications of our results for observations of particle acceleration in the solar coronal jets are also discussed.

Electric Current Evolution at the Footpoints of Solar Eruptions

Abstract Electric currents play a critical role in the triggering of solar flares and their evolution. The aim of the present paper is to test whether the surface electric current has a surface or subsurface fixed source as predicted by the circuit approach of flare physics, or is the response of the surface magnetic field to the evolution of the coronal magnetic field as the MHD approach proposes? Out of all 19 X-class flares observed by SDO from 2011 to 2016 near the disk center, we analyzed the only nine eruptive flares for which clear ribbon hooks were identifiable. Flare ribbons with hooks are considered to be the footprints of eruptive flux ropes in MHD flare models. For the first time, fine measurements of the time evolution of electric currents inside the hooks in the observations as well as in the OHM 3D MHD simulation are performed. Our analysis shows a decrease of the electric current in the area surrounded by the ribbon hooks during and after the eruption. We interpret the decrease of the electric currents as due to the expansion of the flux rope in the corona during the eruption. Our analysis brings a new contribution to the standard flare model in 3D.

Tuning the Exospace Weather Radio for Stellar Coronal Mass Ejections

Abstract Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) on stars other than the Sun have proven very difficult to detect. One promising pathway lies in the detection of type II radio bursts. Their appearance and distinctive properties are associated with the development of an outward propagating CME-driven shock. However, dedicated radio searches have not been able to identify these transient features in other stars. Large Alfvén speeds and the magnetic suppression of CMEs in active stars have been proposed to render stellar eruptions “radio-quiet.” Employing 3D magnetohydrodynamic simulations, we study the distribution of the coronal Alfvén speed, focusing on two cases representative of a young Sun-like star and a mid-activity M-dwarf (Proxima Centauri). These results are compared with a standard solar simulation and used to characterize the shock-prone regions in the stellar corona and wind. Furthermore, using a flux-rope eruption model, we drive realistic CME events within our M-dwarf simulation. We consider eruptions with different energies to probe the regimes of weak and partial CME magnetic confinement. While these CMEs are able to generate shocks in the corona, those are pushed much farther out compared to their solar counterparts. This drastically reduces the resulting type II radio burst frequencies down to the ionospheric cutoff, which impedes their detection with ground-based instrumentation.

3D numerical experiment for EUV waves caused by flux rope eruption

ABSTRACTWe present a 3D magnetohydrodynamic numerical experiment of an eruptive magnetic flux rope (MFR) and the various types of disturbances it creates, and employ forward modelling of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) observables to directly compare numerical results and observations. In the beginning, the MFR erupts and a fast shock appears as an expanding 3D dome. Under the MFR, a current sheet grows, in which magnetic field lines reconnect to form closed field lines, which become the outermost part of an expanding coronal mass ejection (CME) bubble. In our synthetic SDO/AIA images, we can observe the bright fast shock dome and the hot MFR in the early stages. Between the MFR and the fast shock, a dimming region appears. Later, the MFR expands so its brightness decays and it becomes difficult to identify the boundary of the CME bubble and distinguish it from the bright MFR in synthetic images. Our synthetic images for EUV disturbances observed at the limb support the bimodality interpretation for coronal disturbances. However, images for disturbances propagating on-disc do not support this interpretation because the morphology of the bright MFR does not lead to circular features in the EUV disturbances. At the flanks of the CME bubble, slow shocks, velocity vortices and shock echoes can also be recognized in the velocity distribution. The slow shocks at the flanks of the bubble are associated with a 3D velocity separatrix. These features are found in our high-resolution simulation, but may be hard to observe as shown in the synthetic images.

The Creation of Twist by Reconnection of Flux Tubes

A fundamental process in a plasma is the magnetic reconnection of one pair of flux tubes (such as solar coronal loops) to produce a new pair. During this process magnetic helicity is conserved, but mutual helicity can be transformed to self-helicity, so that the new tubes acquire twist. However, until recently, when Wright (Astrophys. J.878, 102, 2019) supplied a solution, the partition of self-helicity between the two tubes was an outstanding puzzle. Here we examine Wright’s result in detail and apply it to a variety of cases. The simplest case, which Wright himself used to illustrate the result, is that of thin ribbons or flux sheets. We first explicitly apply his method to the usually expected standard case (when the tubes approach one another without twisting before reconnection) and confirm his result is valid for flux sheaths and tubes as well as sheets.For the reconnection of sheets, it is shown that the orientation of the sheets needs to be chosen carefully. For flux sheaths and tubes, Wright’s results are demonstrated to hold for the standard case. There is both a local and a global aspect to the effect of reconnection. The local effect of reconnection is to produce an equipartition of the added self-helicity (and therefore of twist), but the extra global effect of the location and orientation of the feet of the sheet, shell or tube in general adds different amounts of magnetic helicity to the two structures.It is important, as Wright realized, to account for any twist or writhe already existing in the fluxes prior to reconnection. Here we show explicitly that, if a section of a flux sheet is twisted by a multiple of pi with its ends held fixed and is then reconnected with another sheet, then the effect of the reconnection is to add that multiple of pi to one sheet and subtract it from the other, while conserving the total helicity. If, on the other hand, the central part of a flux sheath is twisted before reconnection by any angle, then the effect of reconnection is to add that amount of twist to one sheath and subtract it from the other, while conserving the total helicity. Thus, for the local part of the process in both sheets and sheaths, there is no longer helicity equipartition.Finally, we apply Wright’s results explicitly to flux tubes, and in particular to determine the twist that is acquired by an erupting flux rope due to reconnection during an eruptive solar flare or coronal mass ejection.

Two Quasi-periodic Fast-propagating Magnetosonic Wave Events Observed in Active Region NOAA 11167

Abstract We report a detailed observational study of two quasi-periodic fast-propagating (QFP) magnetosonic wave events that occurred on 2011 March 9 and 10, respectively. Interestingly, both the events have two wave trains (WTs): a strong main one (WT-1) and a small and weak secondary one (WT-2). Peculiar and common characteristics of the two events are observed, namely, (1) the two QFP waves are accompanied with brightenings during the whole stage of the eruptions; (2) both the two main WTs are nearly propagating along the same direction; (3) extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) waves are found to be associated with the two events. Investigating various aspects of the target events, we argue that (1) the second event is accompanied with a flux rope eruption during the whole stage; (2) the second event eruption produces a new filament-like dark feature; (3) the ripples of the two WT-2 QFP waves seem to result from different triggering mechanisms. Based on the obtained observational results, we propose that the funnel-like coronal loop system is indeed playing an important role in the two WT-1 QFP waves. The development of the second WT-2 QFP wave can be explained as due to the dispersion of the main EUV front. The coexistence of the two events offers thereby a significant opportunity to reveal what driving mechanisms and structures are tightly related to the waves.

Modeling the Early Evolution of a Slow Coronal Mass Ejection Imaged by the Parker Solar Probe

Abstract During its first solar encounter, the Parker Solar Probe (PSP) acquired unprecedented up-close imaging of a small coronal mass ejection (CME) propagating in the forming slow solar wind. The CME originated as a cavity imaged in extreme ultraviolet that moved very slowly (<50 km s−1) to 3–5 solar radii (R ⊙), where it then accelerated to supersonic speeds. We present a new model of an erupting flux rope (FR) that computes the forces acting on its expansion with a computation of its internal magnetic field in three dimensions. The latter is accomplished by solving the Grad–Shafranov equation inside two-dimensional cross sections of the FR. We use this model to interpret the kinematic evolution and morphology of the CME imaged by PSP. We investigate the relative role of toroidal forces, momentum coupling, and buoyancy for different assumptions on the initial properties of the CME. The best agreement between the dynamic evolution of the observed and simulated FR is obtained by modeling the two-phase eruption process as the result of two episodes of poloidal flux injection. Each episode, possibly induced by magnetic reconnection, boosted the toroidal forces accelerating the FR out of the corona. We also find that the drag induced by the accelerating solar wind could account for about half of the acceleration experienced by the FR. We use the model to interpret the presence of a small dark cavity, clearly imaged by PSP deep inside the CME, as a low-density region dominated by its strong axial magnetic fields.

Identification of Pre-flare Processes and Their Possible Role in Driving a Large-scale Flux Rope Eruption with Complex M-class Flare in the Active Region NOAA 12371

In this article, we study the origin of precursor flare activity and investigate its role towards triggering the eruption of a flux rope which resulted into a dual-peak M-class flare (SOL2015-06-21T02:36) in the active region NOAA 12371. The flare evolved in two distinct phases with peak flux levels of M2.1 and M2.6 at an interval of $\approx$54 min. The active region exhibited striking moving magnetic features (MMFs) along with sunspot rotation. Non-linear force free field (NLFFF) modelling of the active region corona reveals a magnetic flux rope along the polarity inversion line in the trailing sunspot group which is observationally manifested by the co-spatial structures of an active region filament and a hot channel identified in the 304 and 94 \AA\ images, respectively, from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA). The active region underwent a prolonged phase of flux enhancement followed by a relatively shorter period of flux cancellation prior to the onset of the flare which led to the build up and activation of the flux rope. Extreme ultra-violet (EUV) images reveal localised and structured pre-flare emission, from the region of MMFs, adjacent to the location of the main flare. Our analysis reveals strong, localised regions of photospheric currents of opposite polarities at the precursor location, thereby making the region susceptible to small-scale magnetic reconnection. Precursor reconnection activity from this location most likely induced a slipping reconnetion towards the northern leg of the hot channel which led to the destabilization of the flux rope. The application of magnetic virial theorem suggests that there was an overall growth of magnetic free energy in the active region during the prolonged pre-flare phase which decayed rapidly after the hot channel eruption and its successful transformation into a halo coronal mass ejection (CME).

Observation of All Pre- and Post-reconnection Structures Involved in Three-dimensional Reconnection Geometries in Solar Eruptions

Abstract We report on observations of the two newly identified reconnection geometries involving erupting flux ropes. In 3D, a flux rope can reconnect either with a surrounding coronal arcade (recently named “ar–rf” reconnection) or with itself (“rr–rf” reconnection), and both kinds of reconnection create a new flux-rope field line and a flare loop. For the first time, we identify all four constituents of both reconnections in a solar eruptive event, the filament eruption of 2011 June 7 observed by Solar Dynamics Observatory/Atmospheric Imaging Assembly. The ar–rf reconnection manifests itself as shift of one leg of the filament by more than 25″ northward. At its previous location, a flare arcade is formed, while the new location of the filament leg previously corresponded to a footpoint of a coronal loop in 171 Å. In addition, the evolution of the flare ribbon hooks is also consistent with the occurrence of ar–rf reconnection as predicted by MHD simulations. Specifically, the growing hook sweeps footpoints of preeruptive coronal arcades, and these locations become inside the hook. Furthermore, the rr–rf reconnection occurs during the peak phase above the flare arcade, in an apparently X-type geometry involving a pair of converging bright filament strands in the erupting filament. A new flare loop forms near the leg of one of the strands, while a bright blob, representing a remnant of the same strand, is seen ascending into the erupting filament. All together, these observations vindicate recent predictions of the 3D standard solar-flare model.

Manifestations of Three-dimensional Magnetic Reconnection in an Eruption of a Quiescent Filament: Filament Strands Turning to Flare Loops

Abstract We report on observations of the conversion of bright filament strands into flare loops during the 2012 August 31 filament eruption. Prior to the eruption, individual bright strands composing one of the legs of the filament were observed in the 171 Å filter channel data of the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly. After the onset of the eruption, one of the hooked ribbons started to propagate and contract, sweeping footpoints of the bright filament strands as well as coronal loops located close by. Later on, hot flare loops appeared in regions swept by the hook, where the filament strands were rooted. Timing and localization of these phenomena suggest that they are caused by reconnection of field lines composing the filament at the hook, which, to our knowledge, has not been observed before. This process is not included in the standard flare model (CSHKP), as it does not address footpoints of erupting flux ropes and ribbon hooks. It has, however, been predicted using the recent three-dimensional extensions to the standard flare model. There, the erupting flux rope can reconnect with surrounding coronal arcades as the hooked extensions of current ribbons sweep its footpoints. This process results in formation of flare loops rooted in previous footpoints of the flux rope. Our observations of sweeping of filament footpoints are well described by this scenario. In all observed cases, all of the footpoints of the erupting filament became footpoints of flare loops. This process was observed to last for about 150 minutes, throughout the whole eruption.

Numerical simulation of helical jets at active region peripheries

ABSTRACT Coronal jets are observed above minority-polarity intrusions throughout the solar corona. Some of the most energetic ones occur on the periphery of active regions where the magnetic field is strongly inclined. These jets exhibit a non-radial propagation in the low corona as they follow the inclined field, and often have a broad, helical shape. We present a three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulation of such an active-region-periphery helical jet. We consider an initially potential field with a bipolar flux distribution embedded in a highly inclined magnetic field, representative of the field nearby an active region. The flux of the minority polarity sits below a bald-patch separatrix initially. Surface motions are used to inject free energy into the closed field beneath the separatrix, forming a sigmoidal flux rope that eventually erupts producing a helical jet. We find that a null point replaces the bald patch early in the evolution and that the eruption results from a combination of magnetic breakout and an ideal kinking of the erupting flux rope. We discuss how the two mechanisms are coupled, and compare our results with previous simulations of coronal-hole jets. This comparison supports the hypothesis that the generic mechanism for all coronal jets is a coupling between breakout reconnection and an ideal instability. We further show that our results are in good qualitative and quantitative agreement with observations of active-region-periphery jets.

Eruptions and flaring activity in emerging quadrupolar regions

Context. Solar observations suggest that some of the most dynamic active regions are associated with complex photospheric magnetic configurations such as quadrupolar regions, and especially those that have a δ-spot configuration and a strong polarity inversion line (PIL). Aims. We study the formation and eruption of magnetic flux ropes in quadrupolar regions. Methods. We performed 3D magnetohydrodynamics simulations of the partial emergence of a highly twisted flux tube from the solar interior into a non-magnetised stratified atmosphere. We introduced a density deficit at two places along the length of the subphotospheric flux tube to emerge as two Ω-shaped loops, forming a quadrupolar region. Results. At the photosphere, the emerging flux forms two initially separated bipoles, which later come in contact, forming a δ-spot central region. Above the two bipoles, two magnetic lobes expand and interact through a series of current sheets at the interface between them. Two recurrent confined eruptions are produced. In both cases, the reconnection between sheared low-lying field lines forms a flux rope. The reconnection between the two lobes higher in the atmosphere forms field lines that retract down and push against the flux rope, creating a current sheet between them. It also forms field lines that create a third magnetic lobe between the two emerged lobes, that later acts as a strapping field. The flux rope eruptions are triggered when the reconnection between the flux ropes and the field above the ropes becomes efficient enough to remove the tension of the overlying field. These reconnection events occur internally in the quadrupolar system, as the atmosphere is non-magnetised. The flux rope of the first, weaker, eruption almost fully reconnects with the overlying field. The flux rope of the second, more energetic, eruption is confined by the overlying strapping field. During the second eruption, the flux rope is enhanced in size, flux, and twist, similar to confined-flare-to-flux-rope observations. Proxies of the emission reveal the two erupting filaments channels. A flare arcade is only formed in the second eruption owing to the longer lasting and more efficient reconnection at the current sheet below the flux rope.

Observations of a Footpoint Drift of an Erupting Flux Rope

Abstract We analyze the imaging observations of an M-class eruptive flare of 2015 November 4. The pre-eruptive Hα filament was modeled by the nonlinear force-free field model, which showed that it consisted of two helical systems. Tether-cutting reconnection involving these two systems led to the formation of a hot sigmoidal loop structure rooted in a small hook that formed at the end of the flare ribbon. Subsequently, the hot loops started to slip away from the small hook until it disappeared. The loops continued slipping and the ribbon elongated itself by several tens of arcseconds. A new and larger hook then appeared at the end of the elongated ribbon with hot and twisted loops rooted there. After the eruption of these hot loops, the ribbon hook expanded and later contracted. We interpret these observations in the framework of the recent three-dimensional (3D) extensions to the standard solar flare model predicting the drift of the flux rope footpoints. The hot sigmoidal loop is interpreted as the flux rope, whose footpoints drift during the eruption. While the deformation and drift of the new hook can be described by the model, the displacement of the flux rope footpoint from the filament to that of the erupting flux rope indicate that the hook evolution can be more complex than those captured by the model.

Time-dependent data-driven coronal simulations of AR 12673 from emergence to eruption

Aims. We present a detailed study of the magnetic evolution of AR 12673 using a magnetofrictional modelling approach. Methods. The fully data-driven and time-dependent model was driven with maps of the photospheric electric field, inverted from vector magnetogram observations obtained from the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). Our analysis was aided by studying the evolution of metrics such as the free magnetic energy and the current-carrying helicity budget of the domain, maps of the squashing factor and twist, and plots of the current density. These allowed us to better understand the dynamic nature of the magnetic topology. Results. Our simulation captured the time-dependent nature of the active region and the erupting flux rope associated with the X-class flares on 6 September 2017, including the largest of solar cycle 24. Additionally, our results suggest a possible threshold for eruptions in the ratio of current-carrying helicity to relative helicity. Conclusion. The flux rope was found to be a combination of two structures that partially combine during the eruption process. Our time-dependent data-driven magnetofrictional model is shown to be capable of generating magnetic fields consistent with extreme ultraviolet (EUV) observations.

GPU Acceleration of an Established Solar MHD Code using OpenACC

GPU accelerators have had a notable impact on high-performance computing across many disciplines. They provide high performance with low cost/power, and therefore have become a primary compute resource on many of the largest supercomputers. Here, we implement multi-GPU acceleration into our Solar MHD code (MAS) using OpenACC in a fully portable, single-source manner. Our preliminary implementation is focused on MAS running in a reduced physics “zero-beta” mode. While valuable on its own, our main goal is to pave the way for a full physics, thermodynamic MHD implementation. We describe the OpenACC implementation methodology and challenges. “Time-to-solution” performance results of a production-level flux rope eruption simulation on multi-CPU and multi-GPU systems are shown. We find that the GPU-accelerated MAS code has the ability to run “zero-beta” simulations on a single multi-GPU server at speeds previously requiring multiple CPU server-nodes of a supercomputer.

MHD Simulation of Prominence-Cavity System

We present magnetohydrodynamic simulation of the evolution from quasi-equilibrium to onset of eruption of a twisted, prominence-forming coronal magnetic flux rope underlying a corona streamer. The flux rope is built up by an imposed flux emergence at the lower boundary. During the quasi-static phase of the evolution, we find the formation of a prominence-cavity system with qualitative features resembling observations, as shown by the synthetic SDO/AIA EUV images with the flux rope observed above the limb viewed nearly along its axis. The cavity contains substructures including ``U''-shaped or horn-liked features extending from the prominence enclosing a central ``cavity'' on top of the prominence. The prominence condensations form in the dips of the highly twisted field lines due to runaway radiative cooling and the cavity is formed by the density depleted portions of the prominence-carrying field lines extending up from the dips. The prominence ``horns'' are threaded by twisted field lines containing shallow dips, where the prominence condensations have evaporated to coronal temperatures. The central ``cavity'' enclosed by the horns is found to correspond to a central hot and dense core containing twisted field lines that do not have dips. The flux rope eventually erupts as its central part rises quasi-statically to a critical height consistent with the onset of the torus instability. The erupting flux rope accelerates to a fast speed of nearly 900 km/s and the associated prominence eruption shows significant rotational motion and a kinked morphology.

Forward Modeling of SDO/AIA and X-Ray Emission from a Simulated Flux Rope Ejection

Abstract We conduct forward-modeling analysis based on our 2.5 dimensional magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) simulation of magnetic flux rope (MFR) formation and eruption driven by photospheric converging motion. The current sheet (CS) evolution during the MFR formation and eruption process in our MHD simulation can be divided into four stages. The first stage shows the CS forming and gradually lengthening. Resistive instabilities that disrupt the CS mark the beginning of the second stage. Magnetic islands disappear in the third stage and reappear in the fourth stage. Synthetic images and light curves of the seven Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO)/Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) channels, i.e., 94 Å, 131 Å, 171 Å, 193 Å, 211 Å, 304 Å, and 335 Å, and the 3–25 keV thermal X-ray are obtained with forward-modeling analysis. The loop-top source and the coronal sources of the soft X-ray are reproduced in forward modeling. The light curves of the seven SDO/AIA channels start to rise once resistive instabilities develop. The light curve of the 3–25 keV thermal X-ray starts to go up when the reconnection rate reaches one of its peaks. Quasiperiodic pulsations (QPPs) appear twice in the SDO/AIA 171 Å, 211 Å, and 304 Å channels, corresponding to the period of chaotic (re)appearance and CS-guided displacements of the magnetic islands. QPPs appear once in the SDO/AIA 94 Å and 335 Å channels after the disruption of the CS by resistive instabilities and in the 193 Å channel when the chaotic motion of the magnetic islands reappears.

The Initial Morphologies of the Wavefronts of Extreme Ultraviolet Waves

Abstract The morphologies of the wavefronts of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) waves can shed light on their physical nature and driving mechanism, which are still strongly debated. In reality, the wavefronts always deform after interacting with ambient coronal structures during their propagation. Here, we focus on the initial wavefront morphologies of four selected EUV waves that are closely associated with jets or flux-rope eruptions, using the high spatio-temporal resolution observations and different perspectives from the Solar Dynamics Observatory and the Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory. For the jet-driven waves, the jets originated from one end of the overlying closed loops, and the arc-shaped wavefront formed around the other, far end of the expanding loops. The extrapolated field lines of the Potential Field Source Surface model show the close relationships between the jets, the wavefronts, and the overlying closed loops. For the flux-rope-driven waves, the flux ropes (sigmoids) lifted off beneath the overlying loops, and the circular wavefronts had an intimate spatio-temporal relation with the expanding loops. All of the results suggest that the configuration of the overlying loops and their locations relative to the erupting cores are very important for the formation and morphology of the wavefronts, and two jet-driven waves and two flux-rope-driven waves are likely triggered by the sudden expansion of the overlying closed loops. We also propose that the wavefront of EUV wave is possibly integrated by a chain of wave components triggered by a series of separated expanding loops.