Black Hole Flares: Ejection of Accreted Magnetic Flux through 3D Plasmoid-mediated Reconnection

Abstract Magnetic reconnection can power bright, rapid flares originating from the inner magnetosphere of accreting black holes. We conduct extremely high-resolution (5376 × 2304 × 2304 cells) general-relativistic magnetohydrodynamics simulations, capturing plasmoid-mediated reconnection in a 3D magnetically arrested disk for the first time. We show that an equatorial, plasmoid-unstable current sheet forms in a transient, nonaxisymmetric, low-density magnetosphere within the inner few Schwarzschild radii. Magnetic flux bundles escape from the event horizon through reconnection at the universal plasmoid-mediated rate in this current sheet. The reconnection feeds on the highly magnetized plasma in the jets and…

• NS
  National Science Foundation

  Awards: 1818253, PHY-1125915, AST-1815304, AST-1910248, OAC-1818253, AST20008, AST-1911080, 2010145, 1743747, 1910248, DE-AC05-00OR22725, PHY-2010145, 1125915, OISE-1743747
• UD
  U.S. Department of Energy

  Awards: AC05-00OR22725, DE-AC05, 00OR22725
• JT
  John Templeton Foundation

  Award: OISE-1743747
• GA
  Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
• NU
  Northwestern University
• HU
  Harvard University
• CC
  Compute Canada
• UR
  UK Research and Innovation
• FH
  Flatiron Health
• NO
  Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek

  Awards: DE-AC05-00OR22725, 639.043.513
• OO
  Office of International Science and Engineering

  Award: 1743747