The posteruptive evolution of a coronal dimming

We discuss the posteruptive evolution of a "coronal dimming" based on observations of the EUV corona from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory and the Transition Region and Coronal Explorer (TRACE). This discussion highlights the roles played by magnetoconvection-driven magnetic reconnection and the global magnetic environment of the plasma in the "filling" and apparent motion of the region following the eruption of a coronal mass ejection (CME). A crucial element in our understanding of the dimming region's evolution is developed by monitoring the disappearance and reappearance of bright TRACE "moss" around the active region that gives rise to the CME. We interpret the change in the TRACE moss as a proxy of the changing coronal magnetic field topology behind the CME front. We infer that the change in the global magnetic topology also results in a shift of the energy balance in the process responsible for the production of the moss emission while the coronal magnetic topology evolves from closed to open and back to closed again because, following the eruption, the moss reforms around the active region in almost exactly its pre-event configuration. As a result of the moss's evolution, combining our discussion with recent spectroscopic results of an equatorial coronal hole, we suggest that the interchangeable use of the term "transient coronal hole" to describe a coronal dimming is more than just a simple coincidence.