--- title: "ISS Astronaut Snaps Photo of Florida Draining After the Massive Hurricane Ian" description: "A NASA astronaut aboard the ISS got an amazing shot of the water, dirt, and silt draining out of Florida after Hurricane Ian." date: "2022-10-07" modified: "2022-10-08" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/iss-astronaut-florida-draining-hurricane-ian" categories: - "Off-World" - "Space" tags: - "hurricane ian" - "hurricanes" - "iss" - "the digest" --- # ISS Astronaut Snaps Photo of Florida Draining After the Massive Hurricane Ian ![A NASA astronaut aboard the ISS got an amazing shot of the water, dirt, and silt draining out of Florida after Hurricane Ian.]() *\Image: Bob Hines\* ## In The Clouds While floating hundreds of miles above the Earth on board the International Space Station, a NASA astronaut spotted something incredible: the deluge from Hurricane Ian — which has been [battering Southwest Florida]() ever since making landfall late last month — as it drained back into the sea. As astronaut [Bob "Farmer" Hines noted]() earlier this week, his jaw-dropping capture shows the water "dumped" by the Category 4 hurricane as it made its way back off the land and into the Gulf of Mexico. As [*Fox Weather* explained](), Hines' ISS photo doesn't just show water, but also the silt and dirt that once was Florida's soil as it washes away into the Gulf — a demonstration of the powerful forces of nature at work. https://twitter.com/Astro_FarmerBob/status/1577725646658310144 ## Flash Flood It's not exactly surprising why all that Florida dirt got washed into the sea — as the [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted](), more than 3,500 square miles of the Sunshine State, or about five percent of the whole peninsula, was covered by ten or more inches of rain during the mega-storm's zenith on Wednesday. As [*Fox Weather* noted](), Ian is one of the biggest storms to hit the US in recent years. The only hurricane to top its single-day, ten-inch rain coverage was Hurricane Harvey, which devastated the Houston area in 2017. ## Stormwatching Hines also took some stunning photos of Hurricane Ian as it was actively roiling the Southeast — including [one shot]() that saw through the eye of the storm as it made landfall over "the entire Florida peninsula." Along with Hines' own tweets, the [ISS itself also streamed images]() of the mega-storm from above which showed how powerful it was at its most violent point. https://twitter.com/Astro_FarmerBob/status/1575240373718331392 In short, this hurricane season may be one of the most-photographed ever. Which can only be a good thing, as the more we know about these violent storms, the easier it will be to study and track them. **More storm-chasing:** *[We Must Respect This Florida Man Ripping a Bong During an Actual Hurricane]()* ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()