Sean Breslin Published: Nov 30, 2012, 3:54 PM EST weather.com
NOAA VIA GETTY IMAGES
In this handout satellite image provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Hurricane Isaac moves toward the Gulf Coast on August 28, 2012.
The Saffir-Simpson Scale, used to measure wind speed in hurricanes, hasn't had such a great run over the last couple of years.
It isn't the fault of the scale, though -- it has always been solely a measure of wind speed, and sometimes, winds don't depict the true strength of a storm. Hurricane Isaac came ashore with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (a low-end Category 1 hurricane) but created a water rise of more than 11 feet at Shell Beach, La.
When the water rises that high, that fast, the danger doesn't always translate when the scale insists it's a minimal hurricane.
What if there was another way to categorize these storms? The Weather Channel is not trying to change the scale or reinvent the way the public looks at hurricanes, but the discussion is worthwhile.
http://www.weather.com/news/weather-hurricanes/hurricanes-scale-change-20121128
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