If you follow weather news, you probably saw a story this week about a new scientific article that discussed the need for a category 6 hurricane with winds much stronger than the typical category 5 storm at 192 mph or greater. According to the authors, “Since 2013, five storms — all in the Pacific — had winds of 192 mph or higher that would have put them in the new category, with two hitting the Philippines. As the world warms, conditions grow more ripe for such whopper storms, including in the Gulf of Mexico, where many storms that hit the United States get stronger”. This would not be good news for folks in parts of the Southeast, which could be affected by these likely rare but extremely destructive storms. Here are a few articles that describe why discussions of a category 6 storm are more about increasing awareness of the destructive power of strong hurricanes rather than any real need for a new category.
Associated Press: Dial it up to Category 6? As warming stokes storms, some want a bigger hurricane category
Inside Climate News: Is The Current Hurricane Warning System Outdated?
Forbes: The Overlooked Point In A New Study On Category 6 Hurricanes
