Hurricane Melissa’s powerful winds and drenching rains devastated Jamaica. But is its wrath a sign that we need a new designation for monster storms?

A Georgia Tech researcher says we may need more tools to measure the full impacts of strong hurricanes like Melissa.

For the last few years, I have opined about the inadequacy of the Saffir — Simpson scale for conveying the full impacts of hurricanes. Harvey (2017), Milton (2024) and Helene (2024) are examples of hurricanes that altered landscapes and entire regions ...

Melissa is among three Atlantic hurricanes to make landfall with 185 mph winds. Another storm to do so was the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935.

When you hear terms like Category 1, Category 3 or even the rare Category 5 mentioned regarding hurricanes, what is being discussed is the classification system for hurricanes based on their winds. Here is what the scale means: The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane ...

While Hurricane Erin, now long gone and a post-tropical cyclone, did not pose a direct threat to the Northeast, it was a storm that saw dramatic fluctuations in intensity during its life cycle, even undergoing an impressive “extreme rapid intensification.”

As climate change continues to reshape the intensity and behavior of hurricanes, meteorologists and researchers are examining whether the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, a decades-old classification system, still adequately communicates the full scope ...

Hurricane Melissa, maintaining its status as a Category 5 storm—the highest level on the Saffir-Simpson scale—has slightly increased its speed and