And you thought last week's solar flare was big.

NASA reports that nearly 12 hours ago, an X-7-rated flare erupted from the sun.  While it is the third-largest possible rating for a solar flare, apparently it was not directed towards Earth -- NASA suggests there still might be a "glancing blow" from the coronal mass ejection (below) on August 11th.

Below, a movie from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory showing the flash of the eruption.