An astronaut on the International Space Station shared a dire assessment of Hurricane Florence as it barrels towards the southeastern U.S.

German astronaut Alexander Gerst shared photos on his Twitter account Wednesday morning, noting that the storm is so large that "we could only capture her with a super-wide-angle lens."

With the hurricane only days away from landfall, Gerst added: "Get prepared on the East Coast, this is a no-kidding nightmare coming for you."



Watch out, America! #HurricaneFlorence is so enormous, we could only capture her with a super wide-angle lens from the @Space_Station, 400 km directly above the eye. Get prepared on the East Coast, this is a no-kidding nightmare coming for you. #Horizons pic.twitter.com/ovZozsncfh — Alexander Gerst (@Astro_Alex) September 12, 2018



In a separate tweet with photos, Gerst said staring down the "gaping eye of a category 4 hurricane" is "chilling, even from space."



Ever stared down the gaping eye of a category 4 hurricane? It's chilling, even from space. #HurricaneFlorence #Horizons https://t.co/RdDmGgduou pic.twitter.com/2TlMghY4OL — Alexander Gerst (@Astro_Alex) September 12, 2018



According to the latest forecast from the National Hurricane Center, Florence is a Category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of 130 miles per hour. It is expected to approach the coast of the Carolinas by the end of the week.