A Cancellation Nanoflare Model for Solar Chromospheric and Coronal Heating

Priest, E. R., L. P. Chitta, and P. Syntelis, A Cancellation Nanoflare Model for Solar Chromospheric and Coronal Heating, ApJ, 862, L24 (2018) (ADS)

The cartoon

(click on the image for a larger version)

A modern cartoon showing that there is still life in a 2D representation of magnetic reconnection, here tackling the popular "flux cancellation nanoflare" concept again. The 3D geometry, properly discussed in the paper, presumably resembles the more stylish portrayal in an Ellermann Bomb cartoon in the Archive. In such a physical picture, converging flows force the field to reconnect. Why is this not a continuous process, where and when does it occur, etc.; these questions all remain open since we don't understand the microphysics. Thus there seems to be no physics here, and yet observationally "flux cancellation" really does lead to jets bright points, filament eruptions, flares, etc., as well as the Ellermann Bombs.

Date: 2020 May 31