THE BUZZ!
Should there be a Category 6 for hurricanes? These climate scientists say yes
First up.
Hurricanes and storms are evolving which means so our warning and classification system may need an upgrade too.
A new study proposes changing the scale used to assess hurricane intensity to account for stronger storms. Also the current scale doesn’t fully capture storm threats like surge and flooding which can be the most dangerous and destructive elements of a landfalling storm.
The Saffir-Simpson scale is a 1 to 5 rating based only on a hurricane’s maximum sustained wind speed. But a study published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences advises adding a sixth category.
Warmer ocean temperatures caused by climate change enhance the likelihood of powerful hurricanes. The authors of the study argue that the current five-category scale underestimates the threat presented by these monster storms.
A Category 5 hurricane is one with sustained winds of 157 mph or higher. The new scale would limit Category 5 hurricanes to 192 mph, with anything exceeding 192 mph becoming a Category 6 hurricane.
For instance, five storms since 2013 would have been classified as Category 6 under the proposed scale, including Hurricane Patricia and Super Typhoon Haiyan.
The all-time highest record for the highest wind speed ever recorded on earth is 253 mph taken at Barrow Island, Australia, during Tropical Cyclone Olivia in 1996.
And they had my attention at Category 6, monster storm.
Source: CNN
