Three-dimensional MHD Simulations of Solar Prominence Oscillations in a Magnetic Flux Rope

TL;DR

This study uses 3D MHD simulations to analyze solar prominence oscillations, confirming theoretical models and identifying dominant restoring forces, with implications for understanding prominence magnetic structures.

Contribution

It provides detailed 3D simulation results comparing oscillation periods with simplified models and clarifies the dominant restoring forces in different oscillation modes.

Findings

Longitudinal oscillation period ~49 minutes matches pendulum model.

Horizontal transverse oscillation period ~10 minutes fits slab model.

Vertical transverse oscillation period ~14 minutes with magnetic tension dominance.

Abstract

Solar prominences are subject to all kinds of perturbations during their lifetime, and frequently demonstrate oscillations. The study of prominence oscillations provides an alternative way to investigate their internal magnetic and thermal structures as the oscillation characteristics depend on their interplay with the solar corona. Prominence oscillations can be classified into longitudinal and transverse types. We perform three-dimensional ideal magnetohydrodynamic simulations of prominence oscillations along a magnetic flux rope, with the aim to compare the oscillation periods with those predicted by various simplified models and to examine the restoring force. We find that the longitudinal oscillation has a period of about 49 minutes, which is in accordance with the pendulum model where the field-ligned component of gravity serves as the restoring force. In contrast, the horizontal transverse oscillation has a period of about 10 minutes and the vertical transverse oscillation has a period of about 14 minutes, and both of them can be nicely fitted with a two-dimensional slab model. We also find that the magnetic tension force dominates most of the time in transverse oscillations, except for the first minute when magnetic pressure overwhelms.