3-DIMENSIONAL FORCE-FREE LOOPLIKE MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC EQUILIBRIA

Computations of three-dimensional force-free MHD equilibria, del x B = lambdaB with lambda = lambda0, a constant are presented. These equili bria are determined by boundary conditions on a surface corresponding to the solar photosphere. The specific boundary conditions used corres pond to looplike magnetic fields in the corona. It is found that as la mbda0 is increased, the loops of flux become kinked, and for sufficien tly large lambda0, develop knots. The relationship between the kinking and knotting properties of these equilibria and the presence of a kin k instability and related loss of equilibrium is explored. Clearly, ma gnetic reconnection must be involved for an unknotted loop equilibrium to become knotted, and speculations are made about the creation of a closed hyperbolic field line (X-line) about which this reconnection cr eating knotted field lines is centered.