2014/06/02 by Prasad Subramanian, K. P. Arunbabu, Angelos Vourlidas +1 · 1 citation
Physics and Astronomy · #Astrophysical Phenomena and Observations #Coronal mass ejection #Field (mathematics) #Flux (metallurgy) #Lorentz force #Magnetic field #Magnetic flux #Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research #RADIUS #Rope #Solar and Space Plasma Dynamics #Solar radius #astro-ph.SR
paper · pdf · doi:10.1088/0004-637x/790/2/125
Accepted for publication, ApJ
arxiv created 2014/06/02 · openalex publication_date 2014/07/14 · arxiv updated 2015/06/19 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
We examine the propagation of several coronal mass ejections (CMEs) with well-observed flux rope signatures in the field of view of the SECCHI coronagraphs on board the STEREO satellites using the graduated cylindrical shell fitting method of Thernisien et al. We find that the manner in which they propagate is approximately self-similar; i.e., the ratio (κ) of the flux rope minor radius to its major radius remains approximately constant with time. We use this observation of self-similarity to draw conclusions regarding the local pitch angle (γ) of the flux rope magnetic field and the misalignment angle (χ) between the current density J and the magnetic field B . Our results suggest that the magnetic field and current configurations inside flux ropes deviate substantially from a force-free state in typical coronagraph fields of view, validating the idea of CMEs being driven by Lorentz self-forces.