Magnetic Reconnection in Magnetohydrodynamics

We provide examples of periodic solutions (in both 2 and 3 dimension) of the Magnetohydrodynamics equations such that the topology of the magnetic lines changes during the evolution. This phenomenon, known as magnetic reconnection, is relevant for physicists, in particular in the study of highly conducting plasmas. Although numerical and experimental evidences exist, analytical examples of magnetic reconnection were not known.