Understanding the Complex Morphology of a Coronal Mass Ejection: Multiview Analysis and Numerical Modeling
Although all coronal mass ejections (CMEs) that propagate into the heliosphere should contain a magnetic flux rope (MFR) component, the majority do not exhibit the expected white-light MFR morphology of a leading edge plus a cavity. This different appearance could be the result of distortion of the...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | The Astrophysical Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ade311 |
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| author | Cecilia Mac Cormack Abril Sahade Angelos Vourlidas Phillip Hess Robin Colaninno Teresa Nieves-Chinchilla |
| author_facet | Cecilia Mac Cormack Abril Sahade Angelos Vourlidas Phillip Hess Robin Colaninno Teresa Nieves-Chinchilla |
| author_sort | Cecilia Mac Cormack |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Although all coronal mass ejections (CMEs) that propagate into the heliosphere should contain a magnetic flux rope (MFR) component, the majority do not exhibit the expected white-light MFR morphology of a leading edge plus a cavity. This different appearance could be the result of distortion of the internal magnetic structure, merging with other structures, or simply projection effects. These factors complicate the interpretation of CMEs. This complexity is exemplified by a CME observed on 2022 March 28. The event originated from a single eruption, evolving as a textbook CME in the low corona but appearing as a complex two-MFR structure in the white-light observations. Why? To answer this question, we performed a multiview data and modeling analysis to describe the CME coronal evolution. The thermodynamic magnetohydrodynamic model, CORHEL-CME, helps reveal the magnetic configuration of this CME and also reveals that the ambient field plays a crucial role in shaping the complex structure of the CME during early evolution. Our research underscores the importance of integrating multiview observations with physics-based models to gain a deeper insight into the development of complex CMEs. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-d0d1dfe1dd7647ba91d251db4f324e42 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1538-4357 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Astrophysical Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-d0d1dfe1dd7647ba91d251db4f324e422025-08-20T03:15:23ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-01988218010.3847/1538-4357/ade311Understanding the Complex Morphology of a Coronal Mass Ejection: Multiview Analysis and Numerical ModelingCecilia Mac Cormack0https://orcid.org/0009-0009-9799-979XAbril Sahade1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5400-2800Angelos Vourlidas2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8164-5948Phillip Hess3https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1377-6353Robin Colaninno4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3253-4205Teresa Nieves-Chinchilla5https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0565-4890Heliophysics Science Division, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center , 8800 Greenbelt Rd., Greenbelt, MD 20770, USA ; cecilia.maccormack@nasa.gov, abril.sahade@nasa.gov; The Catholic University of America , Washington, DC 20064, USAHeliophysics Science Division, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center , 8800 Greenbelt Rd., Greenbelt, MD 20770, USA ; cecilia.maccormack@nasa.gov, abril.sahade@nasa.govThe Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory , Laurel, MD 20723, USAU.S. Naval Research Laboratory , Washington, DC, USAU.S. Naval Research Laboratory , Washington, DC, USAHeliophysics Science Division, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center , 8800 Greenbelt Rd., Greenbelt, MD 20770, USA ; cecilia.maccormack@nasa.gov, abril.sahade@nasa.govAlthough all coronal mass ejections (CMEs) that propagate into the heliosphere should contain a magnetic flux rope (MFR) component, the majority do not exhibit the expected white-light MFR morphology of a leading edge plus a cavity. This different appearance could be the result of distortion of the internal magnetic structure, merging with other structures, or simply projection effects. These factors complicate the interpretation of CMEs. This complexity is exemplified by a CME observed on 2022 March 28. The event originated from a single eruption, evolving as a textbook CME in the low corona but appearing as a complex two-MFR structure in the white-light observations. Why? To answer this question, we performed a multiview data and modeling analysis to describe the CME coronal evolution. The thermodynamic magnetohydrodynamic model, CORHEL-CME, helps reveal the magnetic configuration of this CME and also reveals that the ambient field plays a crucial role in shaping the complex structure of the CME during early evolution. Our research underscores the importance of integrating multiview observations with physics-based models to gain a deeper insight into the development of complex CMEs.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ade311Solar coronal mass ejectionsSolar magnetic fieldsHeliosphereMagnetohydrodynamical simulations |
| spellingShingle | Cecilia Mac Cormack Abril Sahade Angelos Vourlidas Phillip Hess Robin Colaninno Teresa Nieves-Chinchilla Understanding the Complex Morphology of a Coronal Mass Ejection: Multiview Analysis and Numerical Modeling The Astrophysical Journal Solar coronal mass ejections Solar magnetic fields Heliosphere Magnetohydrodynamical simulations |
| title | Understanding the Complex Morphology of a Coronal Mass Ejection: Multiview Analysis and Numerical Modeling |
| title_full | Understanding the Complex Morphology of a Coronal Mass Ejection: Multiview Analysis and Numerical Modeling |
| title_fullStr | Understanding the Complex Morphology of a Coronal Mass Ejection: Multiview Analysis and Numerical Modeling |
| title_full_unstemmed | Understanding the Complex Morphology of a Coronal Mass Ejection: Multiview Analysis and Numerical Modeling |
| title_short | Understanding the Complex Morphology of a Coronal Mass Ejection: Multiview Analysis and Numerical Modeling |
| title_sort | understanding the complex morphology of a coronal mass ejection multiview analysis and numerical modeling |
| topic | Solar coronal mass ejections Solar magnetic fields Heliosphere Magnetohydrodynamical simulations |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ade311 |
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