Study of the 3D Coronal Magnetic Field of Active Region 11117 Around the Time of a Confined Flare Using a Data-Driven CESE--MHD Model

Abstract

We apply a data-driven MHD model to investigate the three-dimensional (3D) magnetic field of NOAA active region (AR) 11117 around the time of a C-class confined flare occurred on 2010 October 25. The MHD model, based on the spacetime conservation-element and solution-element (CESE) scheme, is designed to focus on the magnetic-field evolution and to consider a simplified solar atomsphere with finite plasma $\beta$. Magnetic vector-field data derived from the observations at the photoshpere is inputted directly to constrain the model. Assuming that the dynamic evolution of the coronal magnetic field can be approximated by successive equilibria, we solve a time sequence of MHD equilibria basing on a set of vector magnetograms for AR 11117 taken by the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) on board the {\it Solar Dynamic Observatory (SDO)} around the time of flare. The model qualitatively reproduces the basic structures of the 3D magnetic field, as supported by the visual similarity between the field lines and the coronal loops observed by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA), which shows that the coronal field can indeed be well characterized by the MHD equilibrium in most time. The magnetic configuration changes very limited during the studied time interval of two hours. A topological analysis reveals that the small flare is correlated with a bald patch (BP, where the magnetic field is tangent to the photoshpere), suggesting that the energy release of the flare can be understood by magnetic reconnection associated with the BP separatrices. The total magnetic flux and energy keep increasing slightly in spite of the flare, while the computed magnetic free energy drops during the flare with an amount of $\sim 10^{30}$ erg, which seems to be adequate to provide the energy budget of the minor C-class confined flare.

27 pages, 11 figures, Accepted by ApJ

References in corpus (10)

• Optimization code with weighting function for the reconstruction of coronal magnetic fields
• Preprocessing of vector magnetograph data for a non-linear force-free magnetic field reconstruction
• Evolution of Magnetic Field and Energy in A Major Eruptive Active Region Based on SDO/HMI Observation
• Non-linear force-free field modeling of a solar active region around the time of a major flare and coronal mass ejection
• The solar magnetic field
• Driving major solar flares and eruptions: a review
• Nonlinear force-free modeling of the solar coronal magnetic field
• Modeling the Dispersal of an Active Region: Quantifying Energy Input into the Corona
• A New Implementation of the Magnetohydrodynamics-Relaxation Method for Nonlinear Force-Free Field Extrapolation in the Solar Corona
• Coronal Magnetic Field Structure and Evolution for Flaring AR 11117 and its Surroundings

Cited by in corpus (19)

• MHD Simulation of a Sigmoid Eruption of Active Region 11283
• Relative magnetic helicity as a diagnostic of solar eruptivity
• The Relation between Solar Eruption Topologies and Observed Flare Features I: Flare Ribbons
• Formation and Eruption of an Active Region Sigmoid: I. Study by Nonlinear Force-Free Field Modeling
• How did a Major Confined Flare Occur in Super Solar Active Region 12192?
• Extrapolation of the Solar Coronal Magnetic Field from SDO/HMI Magnetogram by a CESE--MHD--NLFFF Code
• Temporal Evolution of the Magnetic Topology of the NOAA Active Region 11158
• Sunspot Rotation as a Driver of Major Solar Eruptions in NOAA Active Region 12158
• Statistical study of free magnetic energy and flare productivity of solar active regions
• Testing the Accuracy of Data Driven MHD Simulations of Active Region Evolution
• Magnetohydrodynamic Simulations for Studying Solar Flare Trigger Mechanism
• Study of Three-Dimensional Magnetic Structure and the Successive Eruptive Nature of Active Region 12371
• Reconstruction of a Large-scale Pre-flare Coronal Current Sheet Associated with an Homologous X-shaped Flare
• Variations of the 3-D coronal magnetic field associated with the X3.4-class solar flare event of AR 10930
• Quantitative Characterization of Magnetic Flux Rope Properties for Two Solar Eruption Events
• Testing a Solar Coronal Magnetic Field Extrapolation Code with the Titov-Demoulin Magnetic Flux Rope Model
• A Magnetic Bald-Patch Flare in Solar Active Region 11117
• A Comparison Study of a Solar Active-Region Eruptive Filament and a Neighboring Non-Eruptive Filament
• Earth-affecting Solar Transients: A Review of Progresses in Solar Cycle 24