Since 1971, meteorologists at the National Hurricane Center have rated tropical systems based on the Saffir-Simpson scale.
This is a scale that measures the strongest wind speed around the eye of a hurricane. Using observations from hurricane hunter aircraft or estimates via satellite, the experts at the NHC can assign a wind speed to the storm.
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We explain the Saffir-Simpson in further detail in this article.
Now that the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season has begun, we're chiming in with our thoughts on the scale.
Should it be revised to include other tropical system impacts, or should we keep it as is?
Meteorologist Kat Campbell's response
"It’s a tricky question:
One thing I really like about the scale is that it’s concise, relatively easy to understand, and not subjective.
Since flooding/storm surge is the deadliest part of a hurricane, it does seem silly to not factor that into a scale most people use to determine “how bad it’ll be”. Rainfall is very localized and subjective so it’s hard to make a broad call on that. It would be nice to keep the SS scale and have local NWS offices come up with a local impacts scale that accounts for all the threats. We could even leave it simple with “low, medium, high” risks and throw in extreme (like a hatched SPC). But maybe that’s just the WPC excessive rain outlook.
I just think it’s really hard to include rainfall in the scale since it’s so variable and localized. Maybe storm surge is doable for including."
Meteorologist Elizabeth Gardner's response
"The Saffir-Simpson scale is a measure of wind speed. But far more people die from hurricane flooding than from strong winds. Hurricane Florence made landfall near Wilmington as a Category 1 storm. Fifty four deaths are attributed to Florence which dumped over 35 inches of rain across parts of eastern NC. I think lives could be saved by adding a flood risk to the Saffir-Simpson scale. For example Hurricane Florence at landfall could have been a Cat 1 for wind and a Cat 4 for flooding."
Meteorologist Aimee Wilmoth's response
"I might be old school, but I’m fine with it being the same for the most part. The only thing I wish we could change is the “potential tropical cyclone” verbiage. I just don’t think people take those seriously. And we’ve had some PTC’s that have done some massive damage along our coast. If a spinning system over our coast could be destructive, go ahead and name it (nobody cares if it has a warm, closed core). That’s my 2 cents."
Meteorologist Chris Michaels' response
"I feel that the maximum wind should absolutely be taken into account. We've seen in recent storms, like Michael, just how destructive that can be. And we know that larger storms have larger wind fields. However, there are costlier and deadlier impacts that range from storm surge to flooding.
It's not an easy fix, but I wonder if there is a way to revise the scale to include these impacts. You know how the Storm Prediction Center assigns the Level 1 to Level 5 risks based on probabilities of wind, hail and a tornado? I wonder if we eventually see the Saffir-Simpson scale adjusted to include multiple impacts.
This is why we were extra careful when talking about Helene. At the time it was in North Carolina, it was a tropical storm. To folks in the mountains, however, it was life-altering."
It's clearly not a one-size-fits-all answer. Some meteorologists prefer it one way, while others prefer it another way. At the end of the day, the impact is what matters most. That's what we hope to convey whenever a tropical system is projected to impact any part of North Carolina.
We certainly hope to dodge any storm this hurricane season, especially after how active 2024 was in the Carolinas.
WRAL released its outlook for the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season here.
Have questions about the weather and how it works?
Send me an email with the subject line 'Ask the Meteorologist:' to cmichaels@pugongyingbo.com.