Hurricane Severity Index Explained
The Hurricane Severity Index (or HSI) measures the strength and destructive capability of a storm based on its size and wind intensity.[1] [2] The HSI attempts to demonstrate that two hurricanes of similar intensity may have different destructive capability due to variances in size, and furthermore that a less intense, but very large hurricane, may in fact be more destructive than a smaller, more intense hurricane. It is very similar to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Hurricane Index, which also factors both size and intensity of a hurricane.[3] HSI was developed by a private company program in competition with the National Weather Service's accumulated cyclone energy index.
HSI was developed by ImpactWeather (now StormGeo) meteorologists as a proprietary method of hurricane severity classification.[4]
HSI misclassifies hurricanes in some cases because it does not account for rainfall.[5]
HSI is based on a lookup table rather than an equation. It does not take into account the translational speed of the storm.
Components of the index
The Hurricane Severity Index is a 50-point scale, with wind intensity and size contributing equally.
Determining size points
HSI Size Points[6]
A total of 25 size points is possible.| Wind Radii | Size Point Range |
|---|
| 35 kn | 1–3 |
| 50 kn | 1–4 |
| 65 kn | 1–8 |
| 87 kn | 1–10 |
|
See also
External links
- Hebert, Chris, Bob Weinzapfel and Mark Chambers. “Hurricane Severity Index: A New Way of Estimating a Tropical Cyclone’s Destructive Potential”. 29th Conference on Hurricanes and Tropical Meteorology, 10–14 May 2010, Tucson, Arizona. American Meteorological Society. http://ams.confex.com/ams/29Hurricanes/techprogram/paper_168529.htm
Notes and References
- Web site: The Hurricane Severity Index – A destructive potential rating system for tropical cyclones. 28th Conference on Hurricanes and Tropical Meteorology. Chris Hebert (ImpactWeather Inc.), B. Weinzapfel, and M. Chambers. American Meteorological Society. 2008-12-28. 1 May 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20090314011912/http://ams.confex.com/ams/28Hurricanes/techprogram/paper_139371.htm. 14 March 2009. dead.
- Book: Collins . Jennifer M. . Hurricane Risk . Walsh . Kevin . 2019-02-15 . Springer . 978-3-030-02402-4 . en.
- Web site: CME Hurricane Index Futures and Options . CME Group . 3 October 2022.
- Web site: How to Estimate a Hurricane's Damage Potential . 2024-12-02 . . en.
- Rezapour . Mehdi . Baldock . Tom E. . 2014-12-01 . Classification of Hurricane Hazards: The Importance of Rainfall . Weather and Forecasting . EN . 29 . 6 . 1319–1331 . 10.1175/WAF-D-14-00014.1 . 2 December 2024 . 2014WtFor..29.1319R . 1520-0434.
- Web site: ImpactWeather . 2008-12-18 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110713021356/http://katrina.impactweather.com/hsi/hsi.pdf . 2011-07-13 . dead .
