@article{KliemLinForbesetal.2014, author = {Kliem, Bernhard and Lin, J. and Forbes, T. G. and Priest, E. R. and Toeroek, T.}, title = {Catastrophe versus instability for the eruption of a toroadal solar magnetic flux}, series = {The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics}, volume = {789}, journal = {The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics}, number = {1}, publisher = {IOP Publ. Ltd.}, address = {Bristol}, issn = {0004-637X}, doi = {10.1088/0004-637X/789/1/46}, pages = {13}, year = {2014}, abstract = {The onset of a solar eruption is formulated here as either a magnetic catastrophe or as an instability. Both start with the same equation of force balance governing the underlying equilibria. Using a toroidal flux rope in an external bipolar or quadrupolar field as a model for the current-carrying flux, we demonstrate the occurrence of a fold catastrophe by loss of equilibrium for several representative evolutionary sequences in the stable domain of parameter space. We verify that this catastrophe and the torus instability occur at the same point; they are thus equivalent descriptions for the onset condition of solar eruptions.}, language = {en} }