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Magnetic Helicity Change Rate Associated with X-Class and M-Class Flares

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Abstract

We investigate the total helicity change rate of active regions during the time period of three X-class and five M-class flares using MDI full-disk magnetograms which are sufficient to calculate the advection and the shuffling terms. Two out of three regions with X-class flares show a significant change in the helicity change rate, while none of the five active regions with an associated M-class flare shows this behavior. A closer investigation of the active regions associated with a helicity change reveals certain peculiarities that point to an artificial signal due to the magnetic reversal effect. This is supported by the fact that a simulation of the reversal effect reproduces the same shape of the helicity signal, although with an amplitude one magnitude lower. We investigate active regions with no flaring activity and determine the fluctuations of the helicity change rate due to instrumental effects to be 12 × 1040 Mx2 h-1.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. New Jersey Institute of Technology, University Heights, Newark, NJ, 07102-9895, U.S.A.

    Klaus Hartkorn & Haimin Wang

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  1. Klaus Hartkorn
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  2. Haimin Wang
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Correspondence to Klaus Hartkorn.

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Hartkorn, K., Wang, H. Magnetic Helicity Change Rate Associated with X-Class and M-Class Flares. Sol Phys 225, 311–324 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11207-004-5699-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11207-004-5699-y

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