Magnetohydrodynamic processes in the solar corona: Flares, coronal mass ejections, and magnetic helicity

The magnetized, million-degree solar corona evolves in cycles of about 11 years, in dynamical response to newly generated magnetic fluxes emerging from below to eventually reverse the global magnetic polarity. Over the larger scales, the corona does not erupt violently all the time. Violent events like the flares and episodic ejections of material into interplanetary space occur frequently, several times a day, but they often originate in long-lived magnetic structures that form continually throughout the solar cycle. In this paper, the creation, stability, and eventual eruption of these structures are discussed from basic principles, drawing on recent advances in observation and theory. A global view is offered in which different pieces of observation relate physically, with distinct roles for the conservation of magnetic helicity and the release of magnetic energy in dissipated and ordered forms