Fish-eye view of monster typhoon

Tuesday, July 8, 2014, 1:19 PM - Astronaut Alexander Gerst's latest shots of Typhoon Neoguri are a glimpse into how enormous the storm still is as it begins to impact Japan.

Okinawa is in the thick of it, with the island's government reporting 17 people injured, one seriously, and thousands of people without power.

Near Kyushu, one of Japan's four main islands, a man aboard a fishing boat is missing.

The storm is huge, with an eye at one point around 65 km across.

It's also slow moving and very powerful, boasting sustained winds up to 216 km/h late Monday evening. It is expected to weaken, but torrential rains are expected across Japan on Thursday or Friday, first across Kyushu, then the main island of Honshu.

Already, 600,000 people were advised to evacuate their homes, and many airports are closed. In Okinawa, which the storm passed last night, around 100,000 people are without power as of late Tuesday, and waves as high as 14 m were reported.

TV footage from the region shows damaged storefronts and toppled trees from the storm's winds, while on the mainland, which is nearing the end of the rainy season, the fear is the heavy rains could trigger landslides.

Chinese and Taiwanese authorities are warning their ships to stay clear of the storm.

With files from the Canadian Press.

MEANWHILE IN CANADA: See the best shots of post-tropical storm Arthur's effect on the east coast over the weekend.