Big solar storm hitting Earth today, which could potentially rival the storm of 1859. I was watching SpaceWeather for news on this, knowing that there were a couple of sunspots spitting out some powerful CME’s. News is that there could be auroras visible as far south as middle latitudes, which covers the DC/VA area. (Although DC’s light pollution will probably obscure anything fainter than Magnitude 3.) More info: possible effects on electrical systems, MeFi input.

(Update: Just hours before the scheduled arrival of this amazing, momentously colossal solar flare, the comments have been hit by a massive trollar flare! Commenter’s weblog here. But he is right about all the media hype. The current north-alignment of the earth’s magnetic field is unconducive to strong geomagnetic activity, so we won’t be seeing any real fireworks unless the tilt changes over the weekend.)