Convert Beaufort Scale to Centimeter per Second (Bft → cm/s)

Converting Beaufort to centimeters per second is straightforward: multiply by the conversion factor. Follow these three steps to do it by hand or in your head.

1. 1
   Take your value in Beaufort

   Start with the number of Beaufort (Bft) you want to convert.
2. 2
   Multiply by 100

   The conversion factor from Bft to cm/s is 100. Multiply your value by this number.
3. 3
   Read the result in centimeters per second

   The result is your value in centimeters per second (cm/s).

Multiply the value in Beaufort by 100. For the reverse direction, multiply by 0.01.

• ✓Beaufort is empirical — conversion to m/s uses v = 0.836 × B^1.5.
• ✓Force 4 (moderate breeze) = 5.5–7.9 m/s.
• ✓Marine forecasts still use Beaufort alongside knots.

• ✗Treating Beaufort as a linear scale — it is a power relationship.
• ✗Converting Beaufort to km/h by multiplying — always use the empirical formula.
• ✗Using Beaufort for land winds — it was designed for sea conditions.

What is the Beaufort Scale?

The Beaufort scale is an empirical wind-force scale ranging from 0 (calm) to 12 (hurricane), developed in 1805 by British Royal Navy Admiral Francis Beaufort. Originally designed for ships at sea, the scale was based on observed effects: 'How much sail can my ship safely carry?' Modern versions describe both observed effects on land and sea and corresponding wind-speed ranges. Force 0 is dead calm (under 1 km/h), Force 6 is 'strong breeze' (39–49 km/h, large branches in motion), Force 10 is a 'whole storm' (89–102 km/h), and Force 12 is hurricane (over 118 km/h). The conversion to numeric speeds follows v = 0.836 × Bft^1.5 m/s. Sailors, meteorologists, and shipping forecasts still use the Beaufort scale because its descriptive nature is intuitive: 'Force 8 gale' immediately conveys conditions to anyone familiar with the scale.

• Marine weather forecasts
• Sailing and offshore navigation
• Historical weather records

What is the Centimeter per Second?

Centimeters per second is the natural unit for slow, sustained motions: ocean currents, biological growth rates, sedimentation in geology, and laboratory fluid dynamics. The Gulf Stream flows at about 90–250 cm/s, glaciers creep at 1–10 cm/s on average, and fingernails grow at roughly 0.0035 cm/s. Centimeters per second appears in oceanography, hydrology, soil science, and biological motion studies. It relates to m/s (100 cm/s = 1 m/s), km/h (1 cm/s = 0.036 km/h), and mph (1 cm/s ≈ 0.0224 mph). The CGS (centimeter-gram-second) unit system used cm/s as its base speed, which influenced older physics literature, particularly in astrophysics and fluid mechanics.

• Ocean current speeds
• Biological motion (cells, small organisms)
• Laboratory fluid flow rates