Why meteorologists say proposed 'category 6' for hurricanes is a bad idea in warming world
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Updated: 7:56 AM EST Feb 8, 2024
INTO SUNDAY INTO MONDAY, WITH 1 TO 3IN LIKELY. HEY, BEFORE YOU KNOW IT’S GOING TO BE THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN THAT WE START LOOKING TOWARD THE TROPICS AND ADDING A CATEGORY SIX HURRICANE LEVEL IS WHAT’S UP FOR DEBATE RIGHT NOW. THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES IS ARGUING THAT TONIGHT, BUT A LOT OF METEOROLOGISTS ARE SAYING NOT SO FAST. METEOROLOGIST GRIFFIN HARDY IS JOINING US LIVE IN LOCAL RIGHT NOW EXPLAINING SOME OF THOSE CHALLENGES. HI, GRIFFIN. HI, CHRIS. YEAH. YOU KNOW, WE DEFINITELY HAVE SOME THOUGHTS ON THIS, BUT LET’S TALK ABOUT THAT STUDY THAT CAME OUT ON MONDAY FROM THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. THEY CITE CLIMATE CHANGE AS THE MAIN REASON WHY THEY’RE ARGUING IN SUPPORT OF AN ADDITIONAL CATEGORY SIX TO THE SAPPHIRE SIMPSON SCALE THAT WE MEASURE HURRICANES WITH. SO LET’S UNPACK THIS A LITTLE BIT MORE. SO BROADLY SPEAKING, IT IS TRUE THAT ON AVERAGE, OCEAN TEMPERATURES ACROSS THE GLOBE ARE RISING. AND THAT IS GENERALLY SPEAKING, AGAIN LEADING TO MORE HURRICANES GETTING MORE INTENSE AND MORE LIKELY TO BE ON THE HIGHER END OF THAT. SAPPER SIMPSON SCALE. YOU KNOW, MORE THE FOURS AND THE FIVES RATHER THAN THE ONES AND THE TWOS AND THE STUDY ARGUES THAT WE NEED THAT ADDITIONAL CATEGORY TO MORE EFFECTIVELY MEASURE THOSE HIGHER END STORMS. HOWEVER, MANY METEOROLOGISTS, INCLUDING MYSELF, DISAGREE WITH THIS IDEA. THERE’S TWO MAIN PROBLEMS THAT COME WITH THIS IDEA. THE NUMBER ONE PROBLEM IS PERCEPTION. ANYTIME TIME THAT WE HAVE A THREAT AS HUMAN BEINGS, IT’S HUMAN NATURE TO WAIT UNTIL THAT WORST CASE SCENARIO COMES ALONG BEFORE WE DECIDE TO TAKE ACTION. SO WE HEAR IT ALL THE TIME. WE HEAR PEOPLE SAY, ON THE COAST, I WON’T DO ANYTHING UNTIL THERE’S A FOUR OR A FIVE COMING MY WAY. NOW THAT COULD POSSIBLY BECOME I WON’T DO ANYTHING UNTIL A FIVE OR A SIX, EVEN THOUGH A FOUR IS STILL A VERY DANGEROUS STORM. SO THAT’S THE FIRST PROBLEM WITH THAT. THE SECOND PROBLEM IS THERE ARE OTHER HAZARDS OTHER THAN JUST THE WIND, THE SAVAGE SIMPSON SCALE IS NOT PERFECT, BUT ADDING ANOTHER CATEGORY DOESN’T ADEQUATELY ADDRESS THE OTHER PROBLEMS THAT COME WITH HURRICANES. THAT’S FLOODING. THAT’S STORM SURGE THAT THAT IS SPIN UP TORNADOES. ALL OF THOSE CAN OCCUR ON ANY POINT ON THIS. AFTER SOME SENSE OF SCALE, WHETHER IT’S A TROPICAL DEPRESSION OR A CATEGORY FIVE, ADDING ANOTHER CATEGORY REALLY ISN’T GOING TO HELP TO ADDRESS THOSE POSSIBLE ISSUES. AND THAT’S PART OF THE REASON WHY THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER IS ACTUALLY EXPERIMENTING WITH A NEW TYPE OF FORECAST CONE THAT THEY’RE SET TO KIND OF DABBLE WITH LATER ON THIS SEASON WHEN WE GET CLOSER TO HURRICANE SEASON. BUT IF YOU DO WANT TO CHECK OUT THAT ORIGINAL STUDY, WE’LL HAVE A LINK TO THAT ONLINE ON OUR WEBSITE, WYFF 4.COM. AND FEEL FREE TO TAKE A LOOK AT IT FOR YOURSELVES, BUT DEFINITELY A HOT TOPIC HERE IN THE WEATHER WORLD FOR NOW. RE
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Why meteorologists say proposed 'category 6' for hurricanes is a bad idea in warming world
A new study published Monday at the National Academy of Sciences argues in favor of adding a category 6 to measure the strength of hurricanes.The idea has been met with criticism by many meteorologists, including our own WYFF 4 Weather team. Meteorologist Griffin Hardy explains the two main problems by the idea proposed in the video above. The study cites climate change as the main reason in support of creating another category at the top of the Saffir-Simpson scale, which is used for measuring hurricane strength based on maximum sustained winds on a 1-to-5 scale.The study argues that as global ocean temperatures continue rising — as they already have over the past few decades — hurricanes are becoming increasingly more intense and, thus, more likely to be on the higher end of the scale. The study says a new category is needed to distinguish between those higher-end storms.Check out the complete study here.The study concludes:"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."
GREENVILLE, S.C. —
A new study published Monday at the National Academy of Sciences argues in favor of adding a category 6 to measure the strength of hurricanes.
The idea has been met with criticism by many meteorologists, including our own WYFF 4 Weather team.
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Meteorologist Griffin Hardy explains the two main problems by the idea proposed in the video above.
The study cites climate change as the main reason in support of creating another category at the top of the Saffir-Simpson scale, which is used for measuring hurricane strength based on maximum sustained winds on a 1-to-5 scale.
The study argues that as global ocean temperatures continue rising — as they already have over the past few decades — hurricanes are becoming increasingly more intense and, thus, more likely to be on the higher end of the scale.
The study says a new category is needed to distinguish between those higher-end storms.
"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."
