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Astronaut Scott Kelly Witnesses 'Rare Thundersnow' from Space

Scott Kelly witnessed the massive storm hovering over the East Coast of the United States from his perch on the International Space Station.
A massive snowstorm churns over the East Coast of the United States on Jan. 23.
A massive snowstorm churns over the East Coast of the United States on Jan. 23. Scott Kelly / NASA
By Matthew Nighswander

You can't hear thunder in space but that didn't dampen Scott Kelly's excitement at witnessing the massive storm hovering over the East Coast of the United States from his perch on the International Space Station.

"Rare #thundersnow visible from @Space_Station," he tweeted.

Thundersnow is just what it sounds like: snow accompanied by thunder and lightning. It happens when the atmosphere is especially unstable.

Kelly recently marked the 300th day of his historic year-long stay on the International Space Station.

The snowstorm blanketing the East Coast is clearly visible from space.
The snowstorm blanketing the East Coast is clearly visible from space.Scott Kelly / NASA
Matthew Nighswander

Matt Nighswander joined NBCNews.com as a multimedia producer in July 2012. Nighswander is part of the team responsible for selecting photos for the site and creating original content based on photography. Among his individual responsibilities is the Month in Space slideshow. Nighswander reports to James Collins, director of photography.

Nighswander joined NBCNews.com from MSN.com, where he was a lead homepage photo editor. 

Prior to his work at MSN, he was an international photo editor at The Associated Press and received an MFA in Photography from Columbia College Chicago.