A Free Rotation Framework for Predicting the Mature Rotation of Hurricanes: Scaling Relations Based on Mass, Radius, and Moment-of-Inertia Factor

Despite decades of research into hurricane dynamics, no general relationship has been proposed that predicts the mature rotational state of a hurricane directly from its global physical properties. This paper proposes that the organized rotation of a mature hurricane obeys a simple Free Rotation relationship in which the rotation rate is determined by the hurricane's mass, characteristic radius, and moment-of-inertia factor. The proposed framework does not challenge the established thermodynamic and fluid-dynamical mechanisms responsible for hurricane formation and intensification. Oceanic heat transfer, latent heat release, pressure gradients, the Coriolis effect, and conservation of angular momentum remain essential for hurricane development. Instead, the present work addresses a different question: once these processes have produced a mature rotating system, does its final rotation converge to a characteristic value determined by its global physical properties? Within the Zero-field framework, the mature rotation is interpreted as the consequence of inward spatial-energy transport toward a central Zero-field. Because the Zero-field is postulated to represent a minimum-energy state incapable of accepting additional energy, the surrounding spatial medium circulates around the center, carrying matter with it and producing an organized rotational state. This hypothesis leads to a Free Rotation equation relating rotation rate to mass, radius, and moment-of-inertia factor. Using a calibrated coefficient appropriate for atmospheric vortices, the proposed formulation is applied to representative Category 1–5 hurricane parameter sets. These calculated values are subsequently compared with the representative hurricane values adopted in constructing the model. This agreement demonstrates the internal consistency of the proposed parameterization but does not constitute independent observational validation. Such validation requires application of the fixed equations to measured hurricanes not used in establishing the model coefficients.