As Hurricane Milton barrels toward the Gulf Coast of Florida, it has picked up speed with unprecedented rapidity (there's that "unprecedented" word again), growing from a Category 2 to Category 5 hurricane in just a few hours as it passes over the (unprecedented) warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
In fact, there is now talk of the need to establish a new category, Category 6. Currently, Category 5 is the highest level, and is defined by winds of over 156 mph (251 kph), i.e. 157 mph to infinity. Milton is currently expected to reach wind speeds of over 180 mph (290 kph). If it surpasses 192 mph (309 kph), it will be in the rarefied company of just 5 hurricanes and typhoon since 1980.
Would there be any real point in establishing a new Category 6? Possibly not. Some say that wind speeds alone do not convey the possible destructive effects of storm surge and inland flooding (some of the worst damage from the recent Hurricane Helene occurred when it had already been downgraded to a tropical storm).
Would it be a useful tool for conveying the possibly severity of the storm to an increasingly blasé populace? Maybe.
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