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Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale
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The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale is a scale classifying most Western Hemisphere tropical cyclones that exceed the levels of "tropical depression" and "tropical storm" and thereby become hurricanes. The "categories" it divides hurricanes into are distinguished by the intensities of their respective sustained winds. The classifications are intended primarily for use in gauging the likely damage and flooding a hurricane will cause upon landfall. The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale is used only to describe hurricanes forming in the Atlantic Ocean and northern Pacific Ocean east of the International Date Line. Other areas label their tropical cyclones as "cyclones" and "typhoons", and use their own classification schemes.

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