Great, now when that one pain in the butt customer who calls every day to complain calls, I don't have to answer the phone. OOOps sorry, solar flares, I didn't receive the call!
Compare earthquake activity during low and high solar weather activity... Observations suggests there is a reasonable correlation with increased earthquakes and solar activity (M2 flares +).
Regardless this was a spectacular explosion (larger than our planet)...
Over at "The AK Forum" in the "SHTF and Survival Discussion thread", there is a sub-thread entitled "Coronal Mass Ejection Log" where a member who is an astronomer keeps us posted on solar development and what the astrophysicists think they're going to do.