On the Nature of the X-Ray Bright Core in a Stable Filament Channel

Abstract

In a search for the cause of the intense heating revealed by X-ray emission in filament channels, we have simulated the evolution of a twisted toroidal flux rope emerging quasi-statically into the corona. Initially, the simulated flux rope remains confined in equilibrium as the stored magnetic energy increases. With enough twist buildup, there is a sudden catastrophic loss of equilibrium and total expulsion of the flux rope. We focused on the quasi-static phase in which a current sheet forms within the flux rope cavity, along the so-called bald-patch separatrix surface (BPSS). This comprises an envelope of field lines that graze the anchoring lower boundary, enclosing the detached helical field that supports the prominence. Significant magnetic energy dissipation and heating are expected to center around such current sheets. The heating that should result provides a plausible explanation for the hot X-ray sources, although they appear to be colocated with cool material. If our physical picture is correct, then the development of X-ray " bright cores " or " sigmoids " in a filament channel suggests the presence of a BPSS separating the helical field of a twisted flux rope in stable confinement from the surrounding untwisted fields.