{
  "abstract": "Solar prominences are cool, dense condensations suspended in the million-degree corona by stressed magnetic fields. Because these fields store free magnetic energy before space-weather-relevant eruptions, prominence morphology provides a visible probe of otherwise hidden preeruptive coronal structure. A persistent observational puzzle is why filament barbs, the lateral extensions of prominences, show a preferred bearing linked to the chirality of the filament channel. Here we use a three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulation of a condensation-formed prominence in an emerged flux rope to show that barb chirality arises from the coupling of helical magnetic geometry and magnetic Rayleigh–Taylor interchange. Cool plasma accumulates in skewed flux-rope dips, causing the rope handedness to set the projected barb bearing. Meanwhile, density inversions at the prominence–corona boundary trigger localized interchange motions that continually restructure the barb-bearing lower boundary. Synthetic EUV emission shows persistent right-bearing barbs in a left-handed flux rope, consistent with the observed morphology of dextral filament channels. These results establish filament barbs as observable signatures of hidden flux-rope helicity and show how magnetic topology regulates gravity-driven interchange in magnetically confined astrophysical plasmas.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "High Altitude Observatory"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 2,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Hongyang Luo",
      "orcid": "0009-0004-5893-7936"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yuhong Fan",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-1027-0795"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/4a78jyhspptpe.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3847/2041-8213/aeaa2e",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "4a78jyhspptpe",
  "issns": [
    "2041-8205",
    "2041-8213"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/aeaa2e",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "3103|Solar and Space Plasma Dynamics"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7220407511",
  "pdf_url": "https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/aeaa2e/pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-05",
  "publisher": "American Astronomical Society",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/4a78jyhspptpe.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:18:13Z",
      "native_id": "10.3847/2041-8213/aeaa2e",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/aeaa2e"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "openalex:3103|Solar and Space Plasma Dynamics",
      "subfield": "stellar"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Magnetic Rayleigh–Taylor Interchange Shapes Chiral Barbs in Solar Prominences",
  "title_text": "Magnetic Rayleigh–Taylor Interchange Shapes Chiral Barbs in Solar Prominences",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:18:13Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/4a78jyhspptpe",
  "venue": "The Astrophysical Journal Letters",
  "versions": []
}