A trio of storms swirling above the Pacific Ocean look stunning from space.
Hurricanes Jimena and Ignacio and Typhoon Kilo are churning the waters to the east and west of Hawaii, giving astronauts a chance to get some great views of large storms over the past week.
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The storms made history this weekend when all were Category 4 hurricanes, marking the first time in recorded history that three such storms were seen in the Pacific.
Hurricane #Jimena lurking in the Pacific. pic.twitter.com/TMOSFn8vGR— Kjell Lindgren (@astro_kjell) August 30, 2015
"Hurricane Jimena moved into the Central Pacific Ocean this morning, centered about 1,000 miles east of Hilo," according to the National Hurricane Center on Tuesday.
"Maximum sustained winds are 120 mph -- a Category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale." (The scale measures storm strength from one to five, with five being the strongest.)
Currently, none of the three storms are projected to directly impact Hawaii; however, Hawaii's big island is still feeling Ignacio's effects. The storm is causing dangerously high surf that could last through the week, according to the Associated Press. At the moment, Ignacio is a Category 2 hurricane and should weaken to a Category 1 and then a tropical storm by the end of the week.
Kilo was considered a hurricane earlier this week, but it crossed the international dateline Tuesday, sparking its re-classification as a typhoon.
As of Tuesday, Kilo had sustained winds of 120 mph, making it the equivalent of a Category 3 hurricane. Kilo is expected to strengthen over the course of the next week or so, but at the moment, it's projected to stay in open water.
Another history-making storm, Fred, passed over the Cape Verde Islands Monday into Tuesday as a Category 1 hurricane, dumping rain and causing high surf as it went.
Fred was the first hurricane on record to hit the islands as a hurricane. The storm is now considered a tropical storm and is expected to continue to weaken over the next few days.
#HurricaneFred after it passed over the #CapeVerde Islands this morning. Hope all is well. #YearInSpace pic.twitter.com/LqVA2er6FR— Scott Kelly (@StationCDRKelly) September 1, 2015