Interaction of Magnetic Flux Ropes in Relation to Solar Eruption

Twisted magnetic flux tubes (also called magnetic flux ropes) are believed to play a crucial role in solar eruptive phenomena. The evolution of a single flux rope with or without the influence of an overlying field of a simple geometry has been extensively studied and its physics is rather well understood. Observations show that interacting flux tubes are often involved in solar eruptions. It was Lau and Finn (1996) who intensively studied the interaction between two flux ropes, whose footpoints are anchored in two parallel planes. In this too simplified setting, the curvature of the flux rope axial fields is totally ignored. In our study, the footpoints of flux ropes are placed in a single plane containing a polarity inversion line as in the real solar active region. Our simulation study is performed for four cases: (1) co-axial field and co-axial current (co-helicity), (2) counter-axial field and co-axial current (counter-helicity), (3) co-axial field and counter-axial current (counter-helicity), and (4) counter-axial field and counter-axial current (co-helicity). Except case 3, each case is found to be related with certain eruptive features.