As Hurricane Ian approaches Florida with torrential rains and heavy gusts, NASA shared some stunning footage and photos of the intimidating storm from space.
The International Space Station captured great shots of the Category 3 hurricane as it flew over the storm, which battered Cuba on Tuesday morning (September 27). NASA has a nearly 11-minute video on Twitter that's racked up over 290,000 views. One Twitter user called it "surreal" and "scary."
"It's majestic and terrifying at the same time," A YouTube commentator says.
Another user writes, "Horrendous and eerie considering the lack of sound for something so ludicrously destructive."
Experts expect Ian to get stronger before it strikes the Sunshine State late Wednesday (September 28). The Tampa Bay area is in the direct path, and meteorologists worry that extreme storm surges will do the most damage. Other parts of the state will see anything from heavy rainfall and storm force winds to severe flooding.
Officials at the local and state level are urging Floridians to heed evacuation orders, some of which are mandatory depending on the county.
“We tell people even if they’re lifelong Floridians like myself, this is something that we haven’t seen in our lifetime,” meteorologist Rick Davis with the National Weather Service's Tampa office said. “So we definitely need to take it seriously.”