Development of a Confined Circular-cum-parallel Ribbon Flare and Associated Pre-flare Activity

Abstract

We study a complex GOES M1.1 circular ribbon flare and related pre-flare activity on 26 January 2015 [SOL26-01-2015] in solar active region NOAA 12268. This flare activity was observed by the AIA on board SDO and the RHESSI. The examination of photospheric magnetograms during the extended period, prior to the event, suggests the successive development of a so-called 'anemone' type magnetic configuration. NLFFF extrapolation reveals a fan-spine magnetic configuration with the presence of a coronal null-point. We found that the pre-flare activity in the active region starts ~15 min prior to the main flare in the form of localized bright patches at two locations. A comparison of locations and spatial structures of the pre-flare activity with magnetic configuration of the corresponding region suggests onset of magnetic reconnection at the null-point along with the low-atmosphere magnetic reconnection caused by the emergence and the cancellation of the magnetic flux. The main flare of M1.1 class is characterized by the formation of a well-developed circular ribbon along with a region of remote brightening. Remarkably, a set of relatively compact parallel ribbons formed inside the periphery of the circular ribbon which developed lateral to the brightest part of the circular ribbon. During the peak phase of the flare, a coronal jet is observed at the north-east edge of the circular ribbon which suggests interchange reconnection between large-scale field lines and low-lying closed field lines. Our investigation suggests a combination of two distinct processes in which ongoing pre-flare null-point reconnection gets further intensified as the confined eruption along with jet activity proceeded from within the circular ribbon region which results to the formation of inner parallel ribbons and corresponding post-reconnection arcade.

24 pages, 11 figures, Accepted for publication in Solar Physics

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Cited by in corpus (11)

• Magnetohydrodynamic Simulation of Magnetic Null-point Reconnections and Coronal dimmings during the X2.1 flare in NOAA AR 11283
• Evolutionary stages and triggering process of a complex eruptive flare with circular and parallel ribbons
• A partial filament eruption in three steps induced by external magnetic reconnection
• Statistical analysis of circular-ribbon flares
• Successive occurrences of quasi-circular ribbon flares in a fan-spine-like configuration involving hyperbolic flux tube
• Generic low-atmosphere signatures of swirled-anemone jets
• Energy Partition in Four Confined Circular-Ribbon Flares
• Fine details in solar flare ribbons: Statistical insights from observations with the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope
• Investigation of two coronal mass ejections from circular ribbon source region: Origin, Sun-Earth propagation and Geo-effectiveness
• Flare Expansion to a Magnetic Rope Accompanied by Rare Radio Bursts
• Homologous compact major blowout-eruption solar flares and their production of broad CMEs