Filament eruptions and the impulsive phase of solar flares

Filament motion during the onset of the solar flare impulsive phase is examined. The impulsive phase onset is established from profiles of about 30 keV X-ray fluxes and the rapid flare brightenings characteristic of the H-alpha flash phase. The filament motion begins several minutes before the impulsive or flash phase of the flare. No new accleration is observed in the motion of the filament during the onset of the impulsive phase for at least two of the four flares. The most common H-alpha brightenings associated with the impulsive phase lie near the magnetic inversion line roughly centered under the erupting filament. Filament speeds at the onset of the impulsive or flash phase lie in the range 30-180 km/s. These characteristics indicate that the filament eruption is not driven by the flare plasma pressure, but instead marks an eruption of magnetic field driven by a global MHD instability of the field configuration in the region of the flare.