Theoreticaly, could there be a Cat 6?

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crazycajuncane
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#21 Postby crazycajuncane » Fri Jul 08, 2005 12:48 pm

That is why Cat 5 covers all! Once you reach Cat. 5 you have reached the point of devestation in terms of winds. It's just that simple. Cat. 6 would have no point!

Brent
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#22 Postby arcticfire » Fri Jul 08, 2005 12:48 pm

otowntiger wrote:The question is why would you even need a cat 6, when there are so few cat 5's why make a category that would never happen?


The answer would be you don't need a cat 6 untill cat 5's are so common they warrent defenition.
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#23 Postby otowntiger » Fri Jul 08, 2005 12:53 pm

arcticfire wrote:
otowntiger wrote:The question is why would you even need a cat 6, when there are so few cat 5's why make a category that would never happen?


The answer would be you don't need a cat 6 untill cat 5's are so common they warrent defenition.


My point exactly!
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#24 Postby Valkhorn » Fri Jul 08, 2005 12:57 pm

Fujita only goes F1 through F5.


Wrong. The fujita scale goes all the way up to F12 - where wind speeds approach Mach 1.

F1 through F5 are typically used because anything higher than F6 and above isn't expected to occur on planet Earth. But, wind speeds to F6 and beyond do occur in other planets of our solar system. In fact, Neptune's great dark spot was measured to have winds in excess of F12 speeds, which clocked in at a staggering 1200 miles per hour.

Now the great red spot on Jupiter is a hurricane with 300-350mph winds, so if there ever was a category 6, that would be it :P
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Re: Theoreticaly, could there be a Cat 6?

#25 Postby melhow » Fri Jul 08, 2005 12:59 pm

GalvestonDuck wrote:
sprink52 wrote:I remember a few years ago there was talk about classifying Mitch and Michelle as a new Cat 6 because of the amount of rain plus the extreme winds (175+) that these storms had. Any thoughts? 8-)


Wasn't there a "Category 6" movie? No, wait...I'm thinking "10.0" the earthquake movie. :)


I thought there was going to be a made for tv movie called "Category 6 - Day of Destruction". I sort of remember a promotion for it coming on TNT last year about the time that all of the FL hurricanes were hitting. I remember thinking "wow, that is really tasteless", then *poof*, I never saw another promotion for it. Was I dreaming, or does anyone else remember this?
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#26 Postby LaPlaceFF » Fri Jul 08, 2005 1:24 pm

They classify typhoons in the Pacific as super typhoons....
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#27 Postby The Big Dog » Fri Jul 08, 2005 1:33 pm

You all realize that this discussion is for purely academic purposes, right? I mean, what practical purpose would it serve to designate something a Cat 6? If you're not going to leave your beachfront condo when a Cat 5 comes, are you going to leave for a 6? Doubt it. The damage level in a Cat 5 is already defined as "extreme." What is superlative to "extreme"?

If anything, having a Cat 6 will make people believe that a Cat 5 isn't as bad as it is, because of course, it could always be a Cat 6.
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#28 Postby Thunder44 » Fri Jul 08, 2005 1:47 pm

I believe Cat 5 means damage will be "catastrophic" while cat 4 is "extreme" and Cat 3 is "extensive"
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Re: Theoreticaly, could there be a Cat 6?

#29 Postby GalvestonDuck » Fri Jul 08, 2005 1:51 pm

melhow wrote:
GalvestonDuck wrote:
sprink52 wrote:I remember a few years ago there was talk about classifying Mitch and Michelle as a new Cat 6 because of the amount of rain plus the extreme winds (175+) that these storms had. Any thoughts? 8-)


Wasn't there a "Category 6" movie? No, wait...I'm thinking "10.0" the earthquake movie. :)


I thought there was going to be a made for tv movie called "Category 6 - Day of Destruction". I sort of remember a promotion for it coming on TNT last year about the time that all of the FL hurricanes were hitting. I remember thinking "wow, that is really tasteless", then *poof*, I never saw another promotion for it. Was I dreaming, or does anyone else remember this?


*snaps fingers* That's RIGHT!! There was one!! I looked it up: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0428144/combined

I do remember it now also...and it was BAAAAAAAAAAAAAD! I like Nancy McKeon from her Facts Of Life days, but this was hard to stomach. I'm sure I recorded it on my DVR, but I don't recall archiving it to VHS. I'll have to check my shelf of disaster flicks. LOL! I thought I'd heard that title before.

Thanks for the brain thump, Melhow! :)
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#30 Postby The Big Dog » Fri Jul 08, 2005 1:52 pm

Thunder44 wrote:I believe Cat 5 means damage will be "catastrophic" while cat 4 is "extreme" and Cat 3 is "extensive"

Yeah, I think you're right. :oops: Ok, do we have a superlative for catastrophic? That pretty much says it all.
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#31 Postby vbhoutex » Fri Jul 08, 2005 1:58 pm

Kevin_Cho wrote:But if there's like a hurricane with say...210 mph..that's gonna do a heck of alot more than 150. That's like..total devestation...or even higher winds, who knows.


That is basically an incorrect statement Kevin. After about 160 mph there is generally total devastation. There are very few buildings on this earth that could withstand anything above 175 mph.
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cat 6

#32 Postby cswitwer » Fri Jul 08, 2005 2:08 pm

I don't think we have the ability measure much beyond 156 on the ground. If the buildings/structures holding the weather instruments are destroyed by the winds, there's no way to tell what the wind speeds were. I think. Maybe we call tell winds remotely now, but I don't know how.
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#33 Postby Valkhorn » Fri Jul 08, 2005 2:32 pm

Not really, some anemometers can determine wind speeds past 200mph.

Or else how did they measure that 231mph gust on Mt. Washington, NH?
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#34 Postby senorpepr » Fri Jul 08, 2005 6:24 pm

LaPlaceFF wrote:They classify typhoons in the Pacific as super typhoons....


Actually, super typhoons are a military term for a cyclone with winds greater than or equal to 130kt. The term is also technically legit for Atlantic systems, making Dennis a super hurricane. However, you can have a super typhoon/hurricane with only cat 4 winds (130-135kt).
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#35 Postby senorpepr » Fri Jul 08, 2005 6:27 pm

Valkhorn wrote:
Fujita only goes F1 through F5.


Wrong. The fujita scale goes all the way up to F12 - where wind speeds approach Mach 1.

F1 through F5 are typically used because anything higher than F6 and above isn't expected to occur on planet Earth. But, wind speeds to F6 and beyond do occur in other planets of our solar system. In fact, Neptune's great dark spot was measured to have winds in excess of F12 speeds, which clocked in at a staggering 1200 miles per hour.

Now the great red spot on Jupiter is a hurricane with 300-350mph winds, so if there ever was a category 6, that would be it :P


Actually... the real fujita scale goes from F0 to F12

Somewhere is a paper written by Dr. Fujita has has a full breakdown on the scale, but you can check out the Tusla NWSFO on the Fujita Scale:
http://www.srh.noaa.gov/tsa/wcm/fujita.html

F6 (319-379 mph) Inconceivable Damage - Large objects such as storage tanks and automobiles will fly through a long distnace; home foundations ripped from ground. Assessment of tornadoes in these categories is feasible only through detailed survey involving engineering and areodynamical calculations as well as meteorological models of tornadoes.

F7 - F12 (380 mph to the speed of sound) Not expected to occur!
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#36 Postby senorpepr » Fri Jul 08, 2005 6:30 pm

Skywatch_NC wrote:Kinda like saying there's an F6 tornado :?:

Fujita only goes F1 through F5.


Actually, there are some theories that say the Moore, OK, tornado in 1999 was actually an F6.

Since the real Fujita scale ranges from F0 to F12, with F6 being listed with winds of 319-379 mph (Inconceivable Damage). A group from the University of Oklahoma (if I'm not mistaken) measured the winds of that particular tornado using mobile doppler radar at 318 mph. 318 mph just happens to be the extreme highest of the F5 category.
Last edited by senorpepr on Fri Jul 08, 2005 6:41 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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#37 Postby drudd1 » Fri Jul 08, 2005 6:38 pm

I think a Cat 5 covers it. If a Cat 5 hits, your house is gone. If there was a Cat 6 designation, I wouldn't see the point, you can't knock down what is already destroyed. And for sure, if a Cat 6 was established, there would be folks stay in their homes for a Cat 5, with some silly justification like: "It's only a Cat 5, now if it were a 6 I'd leave", actually believing it would be safer because it was only a 5.
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#38 Postby sprink52 » Fri Jul 08, 2005 6:59 pm

Wow!!! Lots of discussion on this one. I am a contractor and an engineer. Man can build a structure to withstand Cat 5 winds. (i.e., nuclear power plant reactor buildings). What we can't do is build something that will survive a worst case scenario storm surge. A steel reinforced concrete wall can be designed to withstand the force exerted on it by lets say a 175 mph wind. The weak link in the building is the roof. You're talking exponential expansion of lift force much like that of an air plane wing. The challenge is designing something that the roof would stay on at over 150 mph. The Cat 1 through Cat 5 designations are totally a measure of wind speed. The storm surge for any particular area will vary relative to many factors including the shape and contour of the ocean floor adjacent to the point where the eye crosses the coast. Perhaps Cat 6 might be used to indicate a combination measurement of Cat 4 or Cat 5 winds and a sea floor contour that would generate a tremendous storm surge a great distance inland.(i.e. Cat 4 or Cat 5 direct hit on New Orleans with the eye up the mouth of the Mississippi river) Any way, interesting discussion. 8-)
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There is an F6 tornado

#39 Postby jimvb » Fri Jul 08, 2005 7:06 pm

I read somewhere that the ratings for tornadoes is:

F0 Gale, doubtful tornado, or maybe tornadillo
F1 Moderate Tornado
F2 Significant Tornado
F3 Severe Tornado
F4 Devastating Tornado
F5 Incredible Tornado
F6 Inconceivable Tornado

Further, no F6 tornado has ever occurred, although some have come close.
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There is an F6 tornado

#40 Postby jimvb » Fri Jul 08, 2005 7:07 pm

I read somewhere that the ratings for tornadoes is:

F0 Gale, doubtful tornado, or maybe tornadillo
F1 Moderate Tornado
F2 Significant Tornado
F3 Severe Tornado
F4 Devastating Tornado
F5 Incredible Tornado
F6 Inconceivable Tornado

Further, no F6 tornado has ever occurred, although some have come close.
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