Partial slingshot reconnection between two filaments

Abstract

We present a rare observation of an interaction between two filaments around AR 11358 and AR 11361 on 2011 December 3 that is strongly suggestive of the occurrence of slingshot reconnection. A small elbow-shaped active-region filament (F12) underwent a failed eruption that brought it into contact with a nearby larger, thicker filament (F34). Accompanied by the appearance of complicated internal structures below the erupting F12, its two legs separated away from each other and then connected into F34. This process led the filaments to change their connectivity to form two newly linked filaments, and one of them showed a clear inverse γ-shape. However, the alteration in the filament connectivity was imperfect since F34 is discernible after the eruption. These observations can be interpreted as a partial slingshot reconnection between two filaments that had unequal axial magnetic flux. © 2013. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.