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BEAUFORT SCALE
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BEAUFORT SCALE, a series of numbers from o to 12 arranged by Admiral Sir Francis Beaufort (1774-1857) in 1805, to indicate the strength of the wind from a calm, force o, to a hurricane, force 12, with sailing directions such as " 5, smacks shorten sails " for coast purposes, and " royals, &c., ` full and by ' " for the open sea. An exhaustive report was made in 1906 by the Meteorological Office on the relation between the estimates of wind-force according to Beaufort's scale and the velocities recorded by anemometers belonging to the office, from which the following table is taken: Beaufort scale. Corresponding wind. Limits of hourly velocity. Numbers. Calm Miles per hour. o Light breeze Under 2 1-3 Moderate wind 2–12 4-5 Strong wind 13–23 6-7 Gale 24-37 8-9 Storm 38-55 10-11 Hurricane 56-75 12 Above 75