The Saffir-Simpson scale is used to classify
- A.earthquakes by the energy released
- B.hurricanes by their wind speed
- C.tornadoes by the damage caused
- D.droughts by the rainfall deficiency
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is B, hurricanes by their wind speed. The Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale puts a storm of the Atlantic and the eastern Pacific in one of five categories by its sustained wind, from Category 1, which begins at about 119 km/h, to Category 5 at 252 km/h and above, and a storm of Category 3 or higher is called a major hurricane. Option A is wrong because earthquakes are measured by the Richter and moment magnitude scales for energy and by the Mercalli scale for intensity. Option C is wrong because tornadoes are rated on the Fujita and enhanced Fujita scales, which work backwards from the damage to an estimate of the wind. Option D is wrong because drought is assessed from rainfall deficiency and indices of soil moisture, not on this scale. India does not use Saffir-Simpson; the India Meteorological Department uses its own eight step ladder ending in the super cyclonic storm.
Read the full article: Cyclones: Naming, IMD Categories and Warning Stages
Practice Questions
View allA cyclone is known by different names in different parts of the world. In Philippines it is called as _______.
- A.willy-willy
- B.hurricane
- C.typhoon
- D.mango shower
Show answer
The Philippines lies in the western North Pacific, and every tropical cyclone of that basin, whether it strikes the Philippines, China or Japan, is called a typhoon.
Read the full explanation →What is the minimum sea surface temperature generally required for a tropical cyclone to form?
- A.About 16.5 degrees Celsius
- B.About 20 degrees Celsius
- C.About 26.5 degrees Celsius
- D.About 36.5 degrees Celsius
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A tropical cyclone runs on the latent heat released when water vapour condenses, so it needs a sea whose surface is at about 26.5 degrees Celsius or warmer, with that warm water reaching down about fifty metres, so that the churning of the sea does not cool the surface.
Read the full explanation →According to the India Meteorological Department, a system is classified as a super cyclonic storm when the sustained wind speed is at least
- A.118 km/h
- B.167 km/h
- C.222 km/h
- D.300 km/h
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The India Meteorological Department puts a system in the highest class, super cyclonic storm, when the sustained wind at its centre reaches 222 km/h, which is 120 knots.
Read the full explanation →In which year did the naming of tropical cyclones in the north Indian Ocean begin?
- A.1999
- B.2004
- C.2013
- D.2018
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The eight countries of the WMO and ESCAP Panel on Tropical Cyclones agreed on a list of names for this basin and began using them in 2004, long after the Atlantic, where naming had been practice for decades.
Read the full explanation →Which body names the tropical cyclones of the north Indian Ocean?
- A.The Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre, New Delhi
- B.The National Disaster Management Authority
- C.The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services
- D.The National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting
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The names themselves are contributed by the thirteen member countries of the panel, but the centre at New Delhi, which the India Meteorological Department runs, takes the next name from the list, announces it when a deep depression strengthens into a cyclonic storm, and issues advisories to all the member…
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