How strong can a hurricane be?

(? NOAA) Level 5 saffir-simpson hurricane scale has no upper limit in theory. But scientists say that in theory, the wind brought by a strong hurricane will blow the scales off the water. There is no category 6 storm at all, partly because it doesn't matter what you call it once the wind reaches category 5. Really, really bad.

The scale starts from 1 and the speed ranges from 74 to 95 miles per hour (1 19 to 153 kilometers). The wind speed of a category 5 storm is hourly 156 miles (25 1 km) or above. Inferred from the scale, if a category 6 hurricane is formed, its wind speed range is 176- 196 mph. In 2005,

The maximum wind speed of Hurricane Wilma is 175 mph (280 km/h). According to the data of the National Hurricane Center under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), as of Tuesday morning (2065438+September 5, 2007), the wind speed of Hurricane irma was also soaring at the speed of-0/75 miles (280 kilometers) per hour, and it is likely to strengthen. According to the National Highway Transportation Board, irma bumps 270 miles (440 kilometers) east of Antigua and 280 miles (445 kilometers) east-southeast of Barbados. [Destroying history: 8 major hurricanes]

How fast can a hurricane blow? Hurricanes use warm water as fuel to enhance their strength. As the earth's climate warms, the oceans may also warm. Therefore, some scientists predict that hurricanes may become stronger. In particular, the researchers found that as the earth warms, the strongest storms will become more intense, as previously reported in Life Science. According to the evaluation report revised by Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on August 30th, 20 17,

By the end of 2 1 century, human-induced global warming will probably increase the hurricane intensity by 2% on average, reaching 1 1%, but there must be a physical limit. According to the current marine and atmospheric conditions on the earth, according to the calculation of 1998 by Kerry Emanuel, a climatologist at MIT, it is estimated that the maximum potential of a hurricane is about 190 mph (305 km/h). It will change due to climate change. Scientists predict that the maximum potential hurricane intensity will increase as global warming continues. However, they do not agree with the reasons for this increase. Emmanuel and other scientists, who are 200 miles or more away, predict that the wind speed (including the maximum wind speed) should increase by about 5% for every increase in tropical ocean temperature of 1 Celsius. [hurricane season guide 20 17]

Chris Lanser, a meteorologist at the National Hurricane Center, disagrees.

After Wilma, Landsy said that even in the worst case of global warming, if the global temperature rises by 1.8 to 10.8 degrees Fahrenheit (1 6 degrees Celsius), the global total temperature will change by about 5% by 2 1 the end of the year. This means that hurricane winds are unlikely to exceed 200 mph (322 km/h), said Lancia, "KDSP" and "KDSP", however, 196 1 It is said that the maximum sustained wind speed in Typhoon Nancy in the northwest Pacific is 2 15 mph (346 km). Arizona State University has established a climate record clearing house to solve many disputes about weather and extreme weather. In another part of the world, typhoons and hurricanes are the same thing. )

There is a known wind speed record, which exceeds any wind speed measured in a hurricane. 1934 April 12, in Mount Washington, New Hampshire, it is generally believed that the fastest "normal" (or non-storm) wind speed is 23 1 mile (372 kilometers) per hour. 1999 in may, in a tornado in Oklahoma, the researchers measured the wind speed as 3 18 miles (5 12 kilometers) per hour.

Determining the scale "Shortly after Wilma reached its peak in 2005, Emanuel said that the safire-Simpson scale was unreasonable, partly because it only dealt with the wind, but ignored the size of the storm, the precipitation potential and the F of the forward speed. For example, on August 25th, 2007, tropical storm Harvey landed in Texas in the form of a hurricane, which brought unprecedented rainfall to some parts of the state and caused damage to Houston. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the rainfall of a rain gauge exceeds 565,438+0 inches. " I think the whole classification system needs to be seriously reconsidered, "Emanuel told Life Science after Wilma.

But Herbert safire, the creator of the scale, retorted that his scale was very useful because it was simple. In a telephone interview with the Wilma Post, safire said, "It's simple, but I like this ratio." I don't want to look too complicated.

That's why level 6 is not included: according to Simpson, this level is used to measure the damage caused by the wind. When it exceeds 156 mph, the damage begins to look similar.

Editor's Note: This article first appeared on 201210/0/0/6, followed by the latest hurricane information on 20 17. "