Hurricane Sandy timelapse video: NASA releases stunning space video showing superstorm's birth

As Hurricane Sandy strengthens and churns just off the U.S. East Coast Monday, NASA has released a timelapse of the superstorm, showing how it formed from its birth to its current state.

The National Weather Service reported Monday morning maximum sustained winds of 85 miles per hour.

Those could strengthen a little more before a late Monday or early Tuesday landfall.

Because of Sandy's size and the dense population, forecasters expect about 50 million people to feel the storm's effects.

Hundreds of thousands of homes have been evacuated along the East Coast.

For days, government and emergency management officials have been pleading with residents to be prepared, take precautions, and heed storm warnings.

Sandy has already proven deadly, killing at least 67 people in the Caribbean, last week -- 51 of those in Haiti.