Topological Analysis of Emerging Bipole Clusters Producing Violent Solar Events

During the rising phase of Solar Cycle 24 tremendous activity occurred on the Sun with fast and compact emergence of magnetic flux leading to bursts of flares (C to M and even X-class). We investigate the violent events occurring in the cluster of two active regions (ARs), NOAA numbers 11121 and 11123, observed in November 2010 with instruments onboard the {\it Solar Dynamics Observatory} and from Earth. Within one day the total magnetic flux increased by $70\%$ with the emergence of new groups of bipoles in AR 11123. From all the events on 11 November, we study, in particular, the ones starting at around 07:16 UT in GOES soft X-ray data and the brightenings preceding them. A magnetic-field topological analysis indicates the presence of null points, associated separatrices and quasi-separatrix layers (QSLs) where magnetic reconnection is prone to occur. The presence of null points is confirmed by a linear and a non-linear force-free magnetic-field model. Their locations and general characteristics are similar in both modelling approaches, which supports their robustness. However, in order to explain the full extension of the analysed event brightenings, which are not restricted to the photospheric traces of the null separatrices, we compute the locations of QSLs. Based on this more complete topological analysis, we propose a scenario to explain the origin of a low-energy event preceding a filament eruption, which is accompanied by a two-ribbon flare, and a consecutive confined flare in AR 11123. The results of our topology computation can also explain the locations of flare ribbons in two other events, one preceding and one following the ones at 07:16 UT. Finally, this study provides further examples where flare-ribbon locations can be explained when compared to QSLs and only, partially, when using separatrices.Comment: 42 pages, 15 figure

Energy versus information based estimations of dissipation using a pair of magnetic colloidal particles

Using the framework of stochastic thermodynamics, we present an experimental study of a doublet of magnetic colloidal particles which is manipulated by a time-dependent magnetic field. Due to hydrodynamic interactions, each bead experiences a state-dependent friction, which we characterize using a hydrodynamic model. In this work, we compare two estimates of the dissipation in this system: the first one is energy based since it relies on the measured interaction potential, while the second one is information based since it uses only the information content of the trajectories. While the latter only offers a lower bound of the former, we find it to be simple to implement and of general applicability to more complex systems.Comment: Main text: 5 pages, 4 figures. Supplementary material: 5 pages, 5 figure

Recurrent Coronal Jets Induced by Repetitively Accumulated Electric Currents

Three extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) jets recurred in about one hour on 2010 September 17 in the following magnetic polarity of active region 11106. The EUV jets were observed by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). The Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) on board SDO measured the vector magnetic field, from which we derive the magnetic flux evolution, the photospheric velocity field, and the vertical electric current evolution. The magnetic configuration before the jets is derived by the nonlinear force-free field (NLFFF) extrapolation. We derive that the jets are above a pair of parasitic magnetic bipoles which are continuously driven by photospheric diverging flows. The interaction drove the build up of electric currents that we indeed observed as elongated patterns at the photospheric level. For the first time, the high temporal cadence of HMI allows to follow the evolution of such small currents. In the jet region, we found that the integrated absolute current peaks repetitively in phase with the 171 A flux evolution. The current build up and its decay are both fast, about 10 minutes each, and the current maximum precedes the 171 A by also about 10 minutes. Then, HMI temporal cadence is marginally fast enough to detect such changes. The photospheric current pattern of the jets is found associated to the quasi-separatrix layers deduced from the magnetic extrapolation. From previous theoretical results, the observed diverging flows are expected to build continuously such currents. We conclude that magnetic reconnection occurs periodically, in the current layer created between the emerging bipoles and the large scale active region field. It induced the observed recurrent coronal jets and the decrease of the vertical electric current magnitude.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in A&

FIP Bias Evolution in a Decaying Active Region

Solar coronal plasma composition is typically characterized by first ionization potential (FIP) bias. Using spectra obtained by Hinode's EUV Imaging Spectrometer (EIS) instrument, we present a series of large-scale, spatially resolved composition maps of active region (AR) 11389. The composition maps show how FIP bias evolves within the decaying AR from 2012 January 4-6. Globally, FIP bias decreases throughout the AR. We analyzed areas of significant plasma composition changes within the decaying AR and found that small-scale evolution in the photospheric magnetic field is closely linked to the FIP bias evolution observed in the corona. During the AR's decay phase, small bipoles emerging within supergranular cells reconnect with the pre-existing AR field, creating a pathway along which photospheric and coronal plasmas can mix. The mixing time scales are shorter than those of plasma enrichment processes. Eruptive activity also results in shifting the FIP bias closer to photospheric in the affected areas. Finally, the FIP bias still remains dominantly coronal only in a part of the AR's high-flux density core. We conclude that in the decay phase of an AR's lifetime, the FIP bias is becoming increasingly modulated by episodes of small-scale flux emergence, i.e. decreasing the AR's overall FIP bias. Our results show that magnetic field evolution plays an important role in compositional changes during AR development, revealing a more complex relationship than expected from previous well-known Skylab results showing that FIP bias increases almost linearly with age in young ARs (Widing $\&$ Feldman, 2001, ApJ, 555, 426)

The onset of Impulsive Bursty reconnection at a two-dimensional current layer

The sudden reconnection of a non-force free 2D current layer, embedded in a low-beta plasma, triggered by the onset of an anomalous resistivity, is studied in detail. The resulting behaviour consists of two main phases. Firstly, a transient reconnection phase, in which the current in the layer is rapidly dispersed and some flux is reconnected. This dispersal of current launches a family of small amplitude magnetic and plasma perturbations, which propagate away from the null at the local fast and slow magnetosonic speeds. The vast majority of the magnetic energy released in this phase goes into internal energy of the plasma, and only a tiny amount is converted into kinetic energy. In the wake of the outwards propagating pulses, an imbalance of Lorentz and pressure forces creates a stagnation flow which drives a regime of impulsive bursty reconnection, in which fast reconnection is turned on and off in a turbulent manner as the current density exceeds and falls below a critical value. During this phase, the null current density is continuously built up above a certain critical level, then dissipated very rapidly, and built up again, in a stochastic manner. Interestingly, the magnetic energy converted during this quasi-steady phase is greater than that converted during the initial transient reconnection phase. Again essentially all the energy converted during this phase goes directly to internal energy. These results are of potential importance for solar flares and coronal heating, and set a conceptually important reference for future 3D studies

Magnetic Reconnection along Quasi-Separatrix Layers as a Driver of Ubiquitous Active Region Outflows

Hinode's EUV Imaging Spectrometer (EIS) has discovered ubiquitous outflows of a few to 50 km/sec from active regions (ARs). These outflows are most prominent at the AR boundary and appear over monopolar magnetic areas. They are linked to strong non-thermal line broadening and are stronger in hotter EUV lines. The outflows persist for at least several days. Using Hinode EIS and X-Ray Telescope observations of AR 10942 coupled with magnetic modeling, we demonstrate that the outflows originate from specific locations of the magnetic topology where field lines display strong gradients of magnetic connectivity, namely quasi-separatrix layers (QSLs), or in the limit of infinitely thin QSLs, separatrices. We found the strongest AR outflows to be in the vicinity of QSL sections located over areas of strong magnetic field. We argue that magnetic reconnection at QSLs separating closed field lines of the AR and either large-scale externally connected or `open' field lines is a viable mechanism for driving AR outflows which are likely sources of the slow solar wind.Comment: To be published in Astrophysical Journal, 14 pages, 7 figure

How Can Active Region Plasma Escape into the Solar Wind from below a Closed Helmet Streamer?

Recent studies show that active-region (AR) upflowing plasma, observed by the EUV-Imaging Spectrometer (EIS), onboard Hinode, can gain access to open field-lines and be released into the solar wind (SW) via magnetic-interchange reconnection at magnetic null-points in pseudo-streamer configurations. When only one bipolar AR is present on the Sun and it is fully covered by the separatrix of a streamer, such as AR 10978 in December 2007, it seems unlikely that the upflowing AR plasma can find its way into the slow SW. However, signatures of plasma with AR composition have been found at 1 AU by Culhane et al. (2014) apparently originating from the West of AR 10978. We present a detailed topology analysis of AR 10978 and the surrounding large-scale corona based on a potential-field source-surface (PFSS) model. Our study shows that it is possible for the AR plasma to get around the streamer separatrix and be released into the SW via magnetic reconnection, occurring in at least two main steps. We analyse data from the Nan\c{c}ay Radioheliograph (NRH) searching for evidence of the chain of magnetic reconnections proposed. We find a noise storm above the AR and several varying sources at 150.9 MHz. Their locations suggest that they could be associated with particles accelerated during the first-step reconnection process and at a null point well outside of the AR. However, we find no evidence of the second-step reconnection in the radio data. Our results demonstrate that even when it appears highly improbable for the AR plasma to reach the SW, indirect channels involving a sequence of reconnections can make it possible.Comment: 26 pages, 10 figures. appears in Solar Physics, 201

Parallel Evolution of Quasi-separatrix Layers and Active Region Upflows

Persistent plasma upflows were observed with Hinode's EUV Imaging Spectrometer (EIS) at the edges of active region (AR) 10978 as it crossed the solar disk. We analyze the evolution of the photospheric magnetic and velocity fields of the AR, model its coronal magnetic field, and compute the location of magnetic null-points and quasi-sepratrix layers (QSLs) searching for the origin of EIS upflows. Magnetic reconnection at the computed null points cannot explain all of the observed EIS upflow regions. However, EIS upflows and QSLs are found to evolve in parallel, both temporarily and spatially. Sections of two sets of QSLs, called outer and inner, are found associated to EIS upflow streams having different characteristics. The reconnection process in the outer QSLs is forced by a large-scale photospheric flow pattern which is present in the AR for several days. We propose a scenario in which upflows are observed provided a large enough asymmetry in plasma pressure exists between the pre-reconnection loops and for as long as a photospheric forcing is at work. A similar mechanism operates in the inner QSLs, in this case, it is forced by the emergence and evolution of the bipoles between the two main AR polarities. Our findings provide strong support to the results from previous individual case studies investigating the role of magnetic reconnection at QSLs as the origin of the upflowing plasma. Furthermore, we propose that persistent reconnection along QSLs does not only drive the EIS upflows, but it is also responsible for a continuous metric radio noise-storm observed in AR 10978 along its disk transit by the Nan\c{c}ay Radio Heliograph.Comment: 29 pages, 10 figure

Locating current sheets in the solar corona

Current sheets are essential for energy dissipation in the solar corona, in particular by enabling magnetic reconnection. Unfortunately, sufficiently thin current sheets cannot be resolved observationally and the theory of their formation is an unresolved issue as well. We consider two predictors of coronal current concentrations, both based on geometrical or even topological properties of a force free coronal magnetic field. First, there are separatrices related to magnetic nulls. Through separatrices the magnetic connectivity changes discontinuously. Coronal magnetic nulls are, however, very rare. At second, inspired by the concept of generalized magnetic reconnection without nulls, quasi-separatrix layers (QSL) were suggested. Through QSL the magnetic connectivity changes continuously, though strongly. The strength of the connectivity change can be quantified by measuring the squashing of the flux tubes which connect the magnetically conjugated photospheres. We verify the QSL and separatrix concepts by comparing the sites of magnetic nulls and enhanced squashing with the location of current concentrations in the corona. Due to the known difficulties of their direct observation we simulated the coronal current sheets by numerically calculating the response of the corona to energy input from the photosphere heating a simultaneously observed EUV Bright Point. We did not find coronal current sheets not at the separatrices but at several QSL locations. The reason is that although the geometrical properties of force free extrapolated magnetic fields can indeed, hint at possible current concentrations, a necessary condition for current sheet formation is the local energy input into the corona

Effects of partitioning and extrapolation on the connectivity of potential magnetic fields

Coronal magnetic field may be characterized by how its field lines interconnect regions of opposing photospheric flux -- its connectivity. Connectivity can be quantified as the net flux connecting pairs of opposing regions, once such regions are identified. One existing algorithm will partition a typical active region into a number of unipolar regions ranging from a few dozen to a few hundred, depending on algorithmic parameters. This work explores how the properties of the partitions depend on some algorithmic parameters, and how connectivity depends on the coarseness of partitioning for one particular active region magnetogram. We find the number of connections among them scales with the number of regions even as the number of possible connections scales with its square. There are several methods of generating a coronal field, even a potential field. The field may be computed inside conducting boundaries or over an infinite half-space. For computation of connectivity, the unipolar regions may be replaced by point sources or the exact magnetogram may be used as a lower boundary condition. Our investigation shows that the connectivities from these various fields differ only slightly -- no more than 15%. The greatest difference is between fields within conducting walls and those in the half-space. Their connectivities grow more different as finer partitioning creates more source regions. This also gives a quantitative means of establishing how far away conducting boundaries must be placed in order not to significantly affect the extrapolation. For identical outer boundaries, the use of point sources instead of the exact magnetogram makes a smaller difference in connectivity: typically 6% independent of the number of source regions