A study of sympathetic eruptions using the Heliophysics Events Knowledgebase

This poster was presented at the 224th AAS/SPD conference during 2014 in Boston, MA.

Abstract: Over the past few decades there have been a number of papers investigating the connection between flares occurring in succession. Statistically, any connection that affects the timing of successive flares that exists is found to be weak. However, the majority of previous investigations has been limited by only considering the causal connection between soft X-ray flares. More recent case studies have shown convincing evidence that large eruptions cause a global reorganization of overlying magnetic fields that can result in the eruption of both flares and filaments at large distances from the original event. In this work, the connection between GOES X-ray flares (C-, M-, and X-class) and filament eruptions occurring in succession in two different active regions is considered statistically. The filament eruptions are recorded in the Heliophysics Events Knowledgebase by observers using SDO/AIA data. A significant causal connection is found between the two event types, such that large flares are followed by filament eruptions within 24 hours much more often than they are preceded by filament eruptions. This stipulates that the flares either cause the filaments to erupt or affect the eruption timing such that the filament eruptions follow the flares more closely in time.