Saffir-Simpson scale: The hurricane scale possibly needs a Category 6 due to climate change
The raging climate emergency is increasing global temperatures and making storms more intense. Earlier last month, the European Union’s prominent Copernicus Climate Change Service confirmed 2023 as the hottest year on record.
Therefore, some researchers believe the Saffir-Simpson scale doesn’t adequately address the hazards associated with extreme storms. In a new study, scientists explored a hypothetical expansion of the hurricane scale to include a Category 6, and found something interesting.
Recent storms meeting Category 6 threshold
The researchers realised that such an expansion of the scale created in the early 1970s could actually help people better focus on the increasingly challenging risks. The study has been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Currently, the hurricane categories run from 1 to 5, with Category 5 extreme events having wind speeds of 156 mph or higher – enough to produce “catastrophic damage”, including extended power outages and complete roof failure of several residences and industrial buildings.
The lead author of the latest research, Michael Wehner, told CBS News that there have been numerous hurricanes in recent years that carried wind speeds far surpassing 156 mph – and that it may warrant an entirely new category.
Climate change increases temperature and moisture – the sources of energy for a hurricane or tropical cyclone. Therefore, one can expect the speed limit to increase, the researcher noted, saying “and indeed it does”, reported the news agency.
Not the first study to look at the hypothetical expansion
The lead author and his co-researcher James Kossin also ran simulations based on different global heating scenarios, and found the risk of seeing what would be Category 6 storms “has increased dramatically and will continue to increase with climate change.”
Nonetheless, the recent research is not the first one to look at a hypothetical expansion of the hurricane scale. In fact in 2019, former NOAA hurricane hunter and meteorologist Jeff Masters raised concerns over current hurricane categorisations being “inadequate”.
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