From his perch on the International Space Station, astronaut Terry Virts has been taking some beautiful photos of Earth and space and sharing them on social media. Today, he shared his views of Super Typhoon Maysak, including this terrifying view looking straight down into the huge eye of the storm. “Looking down into the eye – by far the widest one I’ve seen,” he tweeted. “It seemed like a black hole from a Sci-Fi movie.”
See more of his images, below.
According to AccuWeather.com, Super Typhoon Maysak is one of the strongest cyclones in history during the months of January, February and March. It has slammed several Micronesian islands, killing 5 people, and is now on its way to the Philippines. As of early on April 1, Maysak had sustained winds of 240 kph (150 mph), equivalent of a Category 4 hurricane. Gusts as high as 390 kph (180 mph) are possible with this storm.
Looking down into the eye – by far the widest one I’ve seen. It seemed like a black hole from a Sci-Fi movie #Maysak pic.twitter.com/hmdBStaY6r
— Terry W. Virts (@AstroTerry) April 1, 2015
The eye of #Maysak typhoon really stands out early in the morning with the shadow being cast deep into the vortex pic.twitter.com/SodkijMt7O
— Terry W. Virts (@AstroTerry) April 1, 2015
More views of the eye- this was about 12 hours ago at sunrise, local time. Unbelievable. #Maysak pic.twitter.com/9Z6obnSVjh
— Terry W. Virts (@AstroTerry) April 1, 2015
The typhoon is expected to weaken, but still poses a threat to the islands in its path:
