Laboratory study of ideal MHD instabilities and magnetic reconnection relevant to solar eruptive phenomena

Both ideal MHD instabilities and impulsive onset of magnetic reconnection are considered to play key roles in initiating solar eruptive phenomena routinely observed by HINODE and other solar observatories. Recent advances in understanding these fundamental plasma processes including their consequences, with an emphasis on laboratory experiments, will be highlighted in comparisons with solar observations and numerical predictions. Capabilities and future prospects of the upcoming next generation laboratory experiment FLARE (Facility for Laboratory Reconnection Experiments) at Princeton will be discussed.