What is the ice cover on the Great Lakes?
What is the ice cover on the Great Lakes?
about 53.3%
The long-term average for maximum Great Lakes ice coverage is about 53.3%. This record high coverage rate for the Great Lakes was 94.7%, set in 1979. The record low ice coverage in the Great Lakes was 11.9% set in 2002.
How does ice cover affect lake level?
But ice cover also impacts the Great Lakes ecosystem and climate. Less ice on the Great Lakes means more open water and moisture that can be picked up and turned into lake effect precipitation for downwind communities. It also means that more water evaporates from the surface of the lakes leading to lower lake levels.
Why is decreasing ice cover on Lake Superior a problem?
Coldwater fish species such as whitefish and lake trout will be forced to compete with warm-water species migrating north with rising temperatures. Declining ice cover could also stress whitefish reproduction in Lake Superior where ice protects eggs from winter storm disturbance.
Are Great Lakes frozen over?
Lakes Superior, Huron and Erie have frozen over in a few harsh winters since 1900, but Michigan and Ontario have never attained complete ice coverage. The long-term annual Great Lakes ice coverage- Erie 68%, Huron 50%, Superior 49%, Michigan 28%, and Ontario 20%.
Do the Great Lakes freeze every year?
It is sporadic for all the Great Lakes to freeze over entirely. Yet they experience substantial ice coverage, with large sections of each lake freezing over in the coldest months. During the winter of 2013-2014, frigid temperatures covered the Great Lakes and the surrounding states.
Do the Great Lakes freeze over during winter?
Are any of the Great Lakes frozen over?
What is the ice cover forecast for the Great Lakes region?
This research product continues to evolve as we gain understanding of the complex climatic drivers for the Great Lakes Region. The most recent ice cover forecast, updated on Feb 14th, 2021, predicted a maximum Great Lakes ice cover of 38%. The long-term average annual maximum ice cover (AMIC) is 53.3%.
What happens to the Great Lakes in the winter?
In years with high ice cover, the Great Lakes often lose a great deal of heat energy to evaporation in the preceding autumn, cooling the water enough to form ice. This means that extensive winter ice cover is actually an effective indicator of high evaporation rates during the previous seasons. 15
What is GLERL’s ice forecasting?
GLERL’s short-term ice forecasting is part of the Great Lakes Coastal Forecasting System, a model used by the National Ocean Service to predict wind, waves, currents, and more. These ice nowcast and forecast products (concentration, thickness, velocity, and vessel icing) are still experimental but being transitioned to operations.
What is the Great Lakes coastal forecasting system?
The Great Lakes Coastal Forecasting System (GLCFS) is a short-term physical modeling framework for predicting waves, currents, water temperature, and ice. GLCFS uses observed and forecasted atmospheric conditions to predict ice concentration (%) up to 3 days in the future.
