A New Sigmoid Catalog from Hinode and the Solar Dynamics Observatory: Statistical Properties and Evolutionary Histories

We present a new sigmoid catalog covering the duration of the Hinode mission and the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) until the end of 2012. The catalog consists of 72 mostly long-lasting sigmoids. We collect and make available all X-ray and EUV data from Hinode, SDO, and the Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory (STEREO), and we determine the sigmoid lifetimes, sizes, and aspect ratios. We also collect the line-of-sight magnetograms from the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) for SDO or the Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI) on the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) to measure flux versus time for the lifetime of each region. We determine that the development of a sigmoidal shape and eruptive activity is more strongly correlated with flux cancelation than with emergence. We find that the eruptive properties of the regions correlate well with the maximum flux, largest change, and net change in flux in the regions. These results have implications for constraining future flux-rope models of ARs and gaining insight into their evolutionary properties.