The dynamics of magnetic flux rings

The evolution of magnetic fields in the presence of turbulent convection is examined using results of numerical simulations of closed magnetic flux tubes embedded in a steady 'ABC' flow field, which approximate some of the important characteristics of a turbulent convecting flow field. Three different evolutionary scenarios were found: expansion to a steady deformed ring; collapse to a compact fat flux ring, separated from the expansion type of behavior by a critical length scale; and, occasionally, evolution toward an advecting, oscillatory state. The work suggests that small-scale flows will not have a strong effect on large-scale, strong fields.