Beaufort Wind Scale

Excerpt

The Beaufort scale of wind velocity relates wind speed to the physical appearance of the sea surface by considering such factors as apparent wave height and the prominence of breakers, whitecaps, foam and spray. It is the oldest method of judging wind force. Originally devised by Admiral Sir Francis Beaufort of the British Navy in 1805 to simplify the signaling of wind and weather conditions between sailing vessels, it has since been repeatedly modified to make it more relevant to modern navigation. Table B7 gives an updated modern version of the Beaufort scale, adapted from British Admiralty (1952), Thomson (1981), and US Army Coastal Engineering Research Center (1984). Meyers et al. (1969) presented an elaborate version of the wind scale based on British Admiralty (1952), McEwen and Lewis (1953), and Pierson et al. (1953). Wind speed measured at 11 m (36 feet) above sea surface is usually applied to use the scale. The wave heights are approximate and represent fully arisen sea state. As with any subjective judgment method, the Beaufort Scale is far from perfect. Similar subjective scales have been proposed to assess tornado and hurricane damages. The Fujita scale (Fscale) was proposed in 1951 by Tetsuya Fujita for rating the severity of tornadoes as a measure of the damage. The Saffir-Simpson scale is used for rating the severity of damages by a hurricane. …