  Coronal mass ejections from the Sun are not always initiated along a radial
trajectory; such non-radial eruptions are well known to be caused by the
asymmetry of the pre-eruption magnetic configuration, which is primarily
determined by the uneven distribution of magnetic flux at the photosphere.
Therefore, it is naturally expected that the non-radial eruptions should be
rather common, at least as frequent as radial ones, given the typically
asymmetrical nature of photospheric magnetic flux. However, statistical studies
have shown that only a small fraction of eruptions display non-radial behavior.
Here we aim to shed light on this counterintuitive fact, based on a series of
numerical simulations of eruption initiation in bipolar fields with different
asymmetric flux distributions. As the asymmetry of the flux distribution
increases, the eruption direction tends to deviate further away from the radial
path, accompanied by a decrease in eruption intensity. In case of too strong
asymmetry, no eruption is triggered, indicating that excessively inclined
eruptions cannot occur. Therefore, our simulations suggest that asymmetry plays
a negative role in producing eruption, potentially explaining the lesser
frequency of non-radial solar eruptions compared to radial ones. With
increasing asymmetry, the degree of non-potentiality the field can attain is
reduced. Consequently, the intensity of the pre-eruption current sheet
decreases, and reconnection becomes less efficient, resulting in weaker
eruptions.
