REFORMATION OF A CORONAL HELMET STREAMER BY MAGNETIC RECONNECTION AFTER A CORONAL MASS EJECTION

A bright feature observed on Jan. 24-26, 1992 with the soft X-ray tele scope on the YOHKOH spacecraft and with the coronameter at the Mauna L oa Solar Observatory assumed the appearance of a coronal helmet stream er as it slowly expanded. Mauna Loa observations from Jan. 22-24 indic ate that a prominence eruption and coronal mass ejection occurred befo re this feature was seen. We interpret the Jan. 24-26 observations as evidence for ''reformation'' of a magnetically closed helmet structure as a consequence of magnetic reconnection that proceeded along a vert ical magnetic neutral sheet formed by the mass ejection.