ON MAGNETIC RECONNECTION IN THE TEMPERATURE MINIMUM REGION ON THE SUN

Reconnection of the magnetic lines of force can effectively occur in t he solar atmosphere, not only in the high-temperature coronal plasma b ut also in the temperature minimum region between the photosphere and the chromosphere. A simple model for reconnection in this region is co nsidered. Parameters of the stationary reconnecting current sheet are expressed through the concentration and temperature of the outside col d and dense plasma, magnetic field intensity, and the speed of the pho tospheric convective flows. The flux of matter through the current she et upward F congruent-to 10(10) - 10(12) g s-1 is sufficient for promi nence formation in the upper chromosphere or lower corona.