A Statistical Study of CME Kinematics and its Relationship to the Magnetic Reconnection Flux

It is well known that CME kinematics are strongly related to the magnetic reconnection process in the solar corona. However, a quantitative understanding of this relationship still remains elusive. To determine the role of reconnection in CME initiation and acceleration, we carry out a statistical study of the CME kinematics relative to the onset and progress of magnetic reconnection, over around 50 eruptions. The CMEs are measured utilizing the EUV and white light observations at the solar limb viewed from STEREO, while the magnetic reconnection processes are evaluated by the magnetic fluxes which are swept by the flare ribbons on the solar disk observed from SDO. With these measurements, we explore the durations and magnitudes of the CME accelerations and the correlation to those of the magnetic reconnection flux. The distributions of the heights at which the CMEs are initiated and which the peak acceleration is reached are addressed. Based on these observational results, the triggering mechanisms for the CMEs are discussed.