Saffir–Simpson scale

The Saffir–Simpson scale classifies Atlantic and eastern Pacific hurricanes into five categories by sustained wind speed, from Category 1 to Category 5. It does not rate storm surge, rainfall, or other hazards.

Tropical cyclone: A rotating low-pressure storm system that forms over warm tropical or subtropical waters. The scale classifies the hurricane-strength subset of this broader storm family.
Category 1 hurricane: A hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 74–95 miles per hour under the Saffir–Simpson scale. It is the scale's lowest hurricane category.
Herbert Saffir: An American civil engineer who developed the hurricane damage scale that became part of the Saffir–Simpson scale. His wind-and-damage framework supplied the scale's original categories.
Accumulated Cyclone Energy: A measure that combines a tropical cyclone's wind intensity and duration over its lifetime. Unlike a single category, it reflects how long a storm remains intense.
Sustained wind: Wind speed averaged over a specified time interval, used to describe a storm's persistent winds. Category thresholds are based on sustained wind, not brief gusts.
Category 3 hurricane: A major hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 111–129 miles per hour under the scale. It marks the threshold at which the scale identifies a major hurricane.
Robert Simpson: An American meteorologist who led the U.S. National Hurricane Center and helped develop the hurricane classification scale. He connected Saffir's scale to hurricane forecasting and public communication.
Hurricane Severity Index: A hurricane rating system that combines wind intensity with the size of a storm's wind field. It accounts for storm size, which the Saffir–Simpson scale omits.
Hurricane category: A numbered class assigned to a hurricane according to its sustained wind-speed range. Each category marks one of the scale's five wind-speed bands.
Category 5 hurricane: A hurricane with maximum sustained winds of at least 157 miles per hour under the scale. It is the scale's highest category, with no upper wind limit.

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