RALEIGH, N.C. ( WNCN ) – As of Tuesday morning, Hurricane Milton is a Category 4 storm, but it spent part of Monday as a Category 5 storm, the highest possible on the Saffir-Simpson strength scale.
Research published earlier this year , however, suggests another category could be added to the scale.
Hurricanes have been getting stronger thanks in part to warmer ocean waters linked to climate change, study authors Dr. Michael Wehner and Dr. Jim Kossin explained. Because of this, they suggested a hypothetical Category 6 could become the top step on the Saffir-Simpson scale.
Currently, the Saffir-Simpson scale has five levels based on a storm’s sustained wind speed:
| Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale | Wind Speed (in miles per hour) |
| Category 1 | 74-95 mph |
| Category 2 | 96-110 mph |
| Category 3 | 111-129 mph |
| Category 4 | 130-156 mph |
| Category 5 | 157 mph or higher |
As of Tuesday morning, the National Hurricane Center says Milton’s maximum sustained winds are 150 mph , making it a strong Category 4. On Monday, while Milton was a Category 5 storm, maximum sustained winds were around 160 mph .