  Studying the evolution of magnetic clouds entrained in coronal mass ejections
using in-situ data is a difficult task since only a limited number of
observational points is available at large heliocentric distances. Remote
sensing observations can, however, provide important information for events
close to the Sun. In this work we estimate the flux rope orientation first in
the close vicinity of the Sun (2-20 Rs) using forward modeling of STEREO/SECCHI
and SOHO/LASCO coronagraph images of coronal mass ejections and then in-situ
using Grad-Shafranov reconstruction of the magnetic cloud. Thus, we are able to
measure changes in the orientation of the erupted flux ropes as they propagate
from the Sun to 1 AU. We present both techniques and use them to study 15
magnetic clouds observed during the minimum following Solar Cycle 23 and the
rise of Solar Cycle 24. This is the first multievent study to compare the
three-dimensional parameters of CMEs from imaging and in-situ reconstructions.
The results of our analysis confirm earlier studies showing that the flux ropes
tend to deflect towards the solar equatorial plane. We also find evidence of
rotation on their travel from the Sun to 1 AU. In contrast to past studies, our
method allows one to deduce the evolution of the three-dimensional orientation
of individual flux ropes rather than on a statistical basis.
