Abstract
We intend to provide a comprehensive answer to the question on whether all Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) have flux rope structure. To achieve this, we present a synthesis of the LASCO CME observations over the last 16 years, assisted by 3D MHD simulations of the breakout model, EUV and coronagraphic observations from STEREO and SDO, and statistics from a revised LASCO CME database. We argue that the bright loop often seen as the CME leading edge is the result of pileup at the boundary of the erupting flux rope irrespective of whether a cavity or, more generally, a three-part CME can be identified. Based on our previous work on white light shock detection and supported by the MHD simulations, we identify a new type of morphology, the ‘two-front’ morphology. It consists of a faint front followed by diffuse emission and the bright loop-like CME leading edge. We show that the faint front is caused by density compression at a wave (or possibly shock) front driven by the CME. We also present highly detailed multi-wavelength EUV observations that clarify the relative positioning of the prominence at the bottom of a coronal cavity with a clear flux rope structure. Finally, we visually check the full LASCO CME database for flux rope structures. In the process, we classify the events into two clear flux rope classes (‘three-part’, and ‘Loop’), jets and outflows (no clear structure). We find that at least 40 % of the observed CMEs have clear flux rope structures and that ∼ 29 % of the database entries are either misidentifications or inadequately measured and should be discarded from statistical analyses. We propose a new definition for flux rope CMEs (FR-CMEs) as a coherent magnetic, twist-carrying coronal structure with angular width of at least 40∘ and able to reach beyond 10 R⊙ which erupts on a time scale of a few minutes to several hours. We conclude that flux ropes are a common occurrence in CMEs and pose a challenge for future studies to identify CMEs that are clearly not FR-CMEs.
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Acknowledgements
The work of AV and RAH is supported by NASA contract S-136361-Y to the Naval Research Laboratory. BJL and YL acknowledge support from AFOSR YIP FA9550-11-1-0048, NASA NNX11AJ65G, and NNX08AJ04G. We thank G. Stenborg for his continuing efforts to provide better quality solar images. SOHO is an international collaboration between NASA and ESA. LASCO was constructed by a consortium of institutions: the Naval Research Laboratory (Washington, DC, USA), the Max-Planck-Institut fur Aeronomie (Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany), the Laboratoire d’Astronomie Spatiale (Marseille, France) and the University of Birmingham (Birmingham, UK). The LASCO CME catalog is generated and maintained at the CDAW Data Center by NASA and The Catholic University of America in cooperation with the Naval Research Laboratory. The SECCHI data are produced by an international consortium of the NRL, LMSAL and NASA GSFC (USA), RAL and Univ. Bham (UK), MPS (Germany), CSL (Belgium), IOTA and IAS (France).
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Flux-Rope Structure of Coronal Mass Ejections
Guest Editors: N. Gopalswamy, T. Nieves-Chinchilla, M. Hidalgo, J. Zhang, and P. Riley
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Vourlidas, A., Lynch, B.J., Howard, R.A. et al. How Many CMEs Have Flux Ropes? Deciphering the Signatures of Shocks, Flux Ropes, and Prominences in Coronagraph Observations of CMEs. Sol Phys 284, 179–201 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11207-012-0084-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11207-012-0084-8