When you hear terms like Category 1, Category 3 or even the rare Category 5 mentioned regarding hurricanes, what is being discussed is the classification system for hurricanes based on their winds.

AUSTIN (KXAN) — As hurricane season is quickly approaching, let’s remind you about the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale. This scale is designed to categorize hurricanes based on wind speed and is ...

From grocery stores to neighborhoods, a hurricane's category might be among the most discussed aspects of a threatening storm. Those categories are based on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, ...

For the last few years, I have opined about the inadequacy of the Saffir — Simpson scale for conveying the full impacts of hurricanes. Harvey (2017), Milton (2024) and Helene (2024) are examples of ...

Wind alone does not account for all hurricane-related fatalities. Storm surge and rainfall do as well. Yet the current warning system—the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale—measures a storm's ...

Storm surge and rainfall — not wind — cause the majority of hurricane deaths, yet are absent from the current warning system. Researchers developed and tested the Tropical Cyclone Severity Scale, ...