Beaufort Wind Scale

What is the Beaufort Wind Scale?

The Beaufort Wind Scale is used as a standard for measuring wind strength in many countries around the world. This scale is used for the purpose of determining wind strength, forecasting and warning of natural disasters. Initially, the original Beaufort Wind Scale had only 12 levels and now has 17 levels. Recognized and officially used by World Meteorological Organization (World Meteorological Organization-WMO).

This wind scale is named after Francis Beaufort, an Irish admiral and hydrographer, created in 1805. The foundation for the development of this scale was researched and formed from the previous work of others until he became a senior manager in the British Royal Navy in the 1830s. Since the beginning of the 19th century, naval officers have made weather observations but there is no standard scale to assess the level of storms, so these observations are very subjective leading to very large errors in the assessment results. Based on the Beaufort scale, the navy has established standards for assessing wind strength, which have been officially applied by the International Meteorological Commission (the predecessor of WMO) since 1874.

By 1947, the Beaufort scale was extended by 5 more levels, from level 13 to level 17, however the extended scale was only applied in certain countries. It was not used globally.