A pair of climate scientists are suggesting the addition of a sixth category for hurricanes due to the escalating impact of climate change on storm intensity, as outlined in a new research study.
In a study released on Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the two scientists contended that the "open-ended" Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale is growing progressively "inadequate" in light of ongoing global warming.
The scale, originating in the early 1970s, is being questioned for its ability to accurately gauge the intensity of certain storms, according to Michael F. Wehner, a climate scientist at the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, and James P. Kossin, a former researcher with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) focusing on climate and hurricanes, who co-authored the study.
According to the proposal, storms with winds surpassing 192 mph would be classified as Category 6.
The study argued that the current open-ended approach, where storms with winds of 157 mph or higher are categorized as Category 5, inadequately alerts people to the hazards of higher wind speeds.
The co-authors of the study contend that the current scale's open-ended nature may lead people to underestimate the danger posed by certain hurricanes, a situation that will become "increasingly problematic in a warming world."
The study noted, “We find that a number of recent storms have already achieved this hypothetical category 6 intensity and based on multiple independent lines of evidence examining the highest simulated and potential peak wind speeds, more such storms are projected as the climate continues to warm.”
According to The Associated Press, since 2013, five hurricanes — all in the Pacific — have attained wind speeds of 192 mph or higher, with warming conditions anticipated to lead to even more intense weather.
Wehner told the AP, “Climate change is making the worst storms worse.”
According to some experts interviewed by the AP, they argue against the necessity of introducing another category, expressing concerns that it could mislead people since it's solely based on wind speed rather than water, which is the most lethal aspect of hurricanes.
Reportedly, Brian McNoldy, a hurricane researcher at the University of Miami, emphasized that climate change is not generating more storms but rather amplifying their intensity and increasing the proportion that qualifies as major hurricanes. McNoldy attributed this trend to warmer oceans.
Kossin explained to the AP that Pacific storms tend to be stronger due to the limited landmasses that could weaken them, unlike those in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean. Although no Atlantic storm has surpassed the 192 mph threshold, Kossin and Wehner informed the news wire that global warming will heighten the likelihood of this occurring in the future.
Jamie Rhome, deputy director of the National Hurricane Center, highlighted to the AP that their office strives “to steer the focus toward the individual hazards, which include storm surge, wind, rainfall, tornadoes and rip currents, instead of the particular category of the storm, which only provides information about the hazard from wind.”
The AP reported that Rhome also emphasized that a Category 5 already implies "catastrophic damage" from wind, indicating that the addition of a higher category would be unnecessary even if storms were to become stronger.
