Eruptions of Magnetic Ropes in Two Homologous Solar Events of 2002 June 1 and 2: a Key to Understanding an Enigmatic Flare

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to understand the drivers, configurations, and scenarios of two similar eruptive events, which occurred in the same solar active region 9973 on 2002 June 1 and 2. The June 2 event was previously studied by Sui, Holman, and Dennis (2006, ApJ, 646, 605; 2008, Adv. Space Res., 41, 976), who concluded that it was challenging for popular flare models. Using multi-spectral data, we analyzed a combination of the two events. Each of the events exhibited an evolving cusp-like feature. We have revealed that these apparent "cusps" were most likely mimicked by twisted magnetic flux ropes, but unlikely to be related to the inverted Y-like magnetic configuration in the standard flare model. The ropes originated inside a funnel-like magnetic domain whose base was bounded by an EUV ring structure, and the top was associated with a coronal null point. The ropes appear to be the major drivers for the events, but their rise was not triggered by reconnection in the coronal null point. We propose a scenario and a three-dimensional scheme for these events in which the filament eruptions and flares were caused by interaction of the ropes.

Responsibility of a Filament Eruption for the Initiation of a Flare, CME, and Blast Wave, and its Possible Transformation into a Bow Shock

“…All observational facts considered here confirm that we dealt with fast MHD shock waves, initially excited in the low corona by sharply erupting flux ropes, and neither by a flare pressure pulse nor by the outer surface of a CME. The initial impulsive-piston shock excitation during the early flare rise was responsible, with minor variations, for the shocks observed in a number of different events, ranging from the GOES B class up to the X class (Meshalkina et al, 2009;Grechnev et al, 2011bGrechnev et al, , 2014aGrechnev et al, , 2013. The concept, which related the source of a type II emission to the current sheet of a coronal streamer stressed by a shock front, has accounted for the structural features of the observed type II bursts.…”

The 26 December 2001 Solar Eruptive Event Responsible for GLE63: III. CME, Shock Waves, and Energetic Particles

“…The coronal configuration in Figure 9b resembles an inverted funnel. Such funnels appear above photospheric magnetic islands inside opposite-polarity regions and contain coronal null points (Masson et al, 2009;Meshalkina et al, 2009). The presence of a magnetic island at the photospheric base of the jet was revealed in Article II.…”

“…A correlation between near-Earth proton enhancements and microwave bursts has been known for a long time (Croom, 1971;Castelli and Barron, 1977;Akinian et al, 1978;Melnikov et al, 1991). Kahler (1982) explained this correlation by the "big flare syndrome" (BFS), i.e., a general correspondence between the energy release in an eruptive flare and its various manifestations.…”

Radio, Hard X-Ray, and Gamma-Ray Emissions Associated with a Far-Side Solar Event

“…As a result, both open and closed structures of these domains become filled with energetic particles as well as cool plasma of the pre-eruptive filament. Related schemes containing a single null point were discussed by Gary and Moore (2004), Masson, Antiochos, and DeVore (2013), Meshalkina et al (2009), Grechnev et al (2013b), and Uralov et al (2014. Stretching a large-scale quadrupole into the solar wind might cause disappearance of the null point.…”