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As Hurricane Joaquin headed for the Bahamas on Friday morning, NASA astronaut Scott Kelly captured the chaotic scene below from the calm of the International Space Station.

Kelly, who recently hit the halfway mark of his year-long mission in space, shared several photos of the storm on his popular Twitter account.

The Category 4 storm hit the Bahamas early Friday with winds that reached 140 miles per hour. It's expected to move north later in the day, although the chances that it could directly hit the East Coast have lessened.

Still, U.S. cities are preparing for heavy rain and possible flooding. (Of course, no such precautions are being taken on the International Space Station, which orbits around 220 miles above the Earth's surface.)

The most pressing concern for U.S. officials is a weather pattern called a "Rex Block." It's expected to bring heavy rains and possibly flash floods to the East Coast, especially the Carolinas, where some areas can expect between one and two feet of rain.