A limiting height of quiescent prominences before eruption

Boris Filippov

Abstract


We discuss the problem of a limiting height of quiescent prominences and the relation of this value to the photospheric magnetic field characteristics. In some papers the limiting height is assumed to be related to the strength of the magnetic field or its horizontal gradient. We note that in a model of inverse polarity filament, the equilibrium is stable only in the region where the photospheric magnetic field falls off with a height not faster than 1/h. Current-free magnetic field calculations are compared with the observed prominence heights. It is shown that a prominence height is in fact depends on the vertical gradient value and never exceeds the level where the power is equal to one in the power-low decrease of the magnetic field. This is a new way to predict prominence eruptions and CME.

   Authors: B.P. Filippov, O.G. Den.
 

  Organization: Institute of Terrestrial Magnetism, Ionosphere and
Radio Wave Propagation, Russian
Academy of Sciences
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