Since the 1970s, ice coverage has generally decreased. On that day, ice covered 55 percent of the lakes, according to the NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. is combined with other sources to translate daily ice charts into a pixel grid of percent 9.5% ice coverage in 2002 is the lowest on record. The Great Lakes have warmed faster than the nearby air temperature in recent years. As you can see, there is a lot of ice on Lake Superior. After a period of strong winds over the weekend, ice extent on othe Great Lakes dropped to 65.13% on Monday. Fish spawning can be impacted. Lake Michigan's ice coverage is impressive, as these pictures show, but it's still far from breaking a record. These links to the Great Lakes Coastal Forecasting System -- Nowcast/Forecast pages include: current observed ice cover, wind, and air temperature; model-derived ice thickness, ice velocity, vessel icing, surface currents, and water temperature. 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. With shorter winters and op… Data is from the U.S. National Ice Center and Canadian Ice Service. How to read an ice chart. In contrast, Lake Erie, a shallower lake, is normally over 70% ice covered by late winter. Back to the main GLERL ice page, NOAA - Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR). community in research, application, and management. The Great Lakes certainly do, with ice coverage at its highest percentage in 35 years, according to scientists from the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory in Ann Arbor, Mich. This is the MODIS Lake Superior satellite picture from Wed. PM (2/27/19) (from NOAA Coastwatch). Decent early season ice coverage records date back to 1973. The siege of polar air that has gripped the region this winter has caused the most extensive freeze-over of the lakes since … Great Lakes CoastWatch Node NOAA/Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory 4840 S. State Rd. (Feb. 19, 2019) Every year freighters get stuck in the ice delaying deliveries and costing money. ... And he sent me pictures of people standing on little ice floes, jumping into the lake in the winter. Ice actually has a considerable impact. Then, additional chilly weather stopped the thaw and led to rapid ice … Great Lakes ice cover decreasing over last 40 years A downward trend since the 1970s in the annual maximum extent of Great Lakes ice cover, which reaches a maximum every year during late winter and early spring, spells trouble for the Great Lakes ecosystem and the people who rely on it. The 2011-2012 ice cover maximum was approximately 5%, the lowest ever observed in the satellite era. 30-year average ice condition graphics for the Arctic, Hudson Bay, East Coast, Great Lakes Great Lakes ice cover facts since 1973 94.7% ice coverage in 1979 is the maximum on record. I have been watching their models for a month and every forcast for each lake and run has been so off I can not understand how it can even be shown to the public. Shoreline structures can be damaged. On the bottom is a time series of the annual maximum ice cover averaged over all of the Great Lakes from 1973 to 2018. The decline of ice cover on the Great Lakes is best explained by a more sudden shift to less ice as opposed to a gradual decline (Mason et al 2016 and Van Cleave et al 2014). But this is an anomaly. Along with the yearly data (in light blue), a five-year running average (dark blue) is also included as well as the overall trend of the maximum ice cover data (dotted line). GREAT LAKES ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH LABORATORY. The bottom image shows ice cover a year earlier (March 16, 2014) when ice covered 75 percent of the lakes. Another brutal year was 1994, when ice coverage peaked at 89 percent. The Detroit Army Corps of Engineers has kept records of Great Lakes ice coverage going back to 1973. Posted at 8:41 AM, Feb 17, 2020 Shipping is shut down for a part of the year. NOAA GLERL and its partners conduct innovative research on the dynamic environments and ecosystems of the Great Lakes and coastal regions to provide information for resource use and management decisions that lead to safe and sustainable ecosystems, ecosystem services, and human communities. The total loss for overall Great Lakes ice coverage is 71%, while Lake Superior places second with a 79% loss. This year on Feb. 8, ice coverage of the Great Lakes was at 54 percent, the NWS reported. Great Lakes Ice Cover from December 6th, 2017. Monday, January 12, 2015, 7:51 PM - Winter sport enthusiasts can rejoice as a cold snap has pushed total ice coverage on the Great Lakes to double-digits. “And 33 times that of two years ago.” Here are comparison maps of ice concentration on Lake Superior. According to the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory, 0.1% of the Great Lakes is covered with ice. University of Oklahoma Press. Whitefish, for instance, use the ice cover to protect its eggs from big winter storms, which rile up the water. The total ice coverage on the five Great Lakes was 1.5% on Tuesday, or the second lowest for Jan. 7, according to NOAA's Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL). That frigid year, the Great Lakes together reached 92% ice coverage, during which Lake Erie and the Straits of Mackinac (the region between Lakes Michigan and Huron) completely froze over and Lakes Huron and Superior nearly froze over. Great Lakes MODIS Imagery. According to the records I have, that’s the 9th highest extent in the 47-year satellite record. The image on top shows the Great Lakes at the time of maximum ice cover averaged from 1973-2018 based on winter season data from NOAA’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. Typical ice condition charts. Was off by 33% in coverage in 48 hour forecast period. NOAA The greatest ice coverage existed over northern Lake Huron, at 15.3 percent, while the lowest was just a hint of ice… Two recent consecutive winters (2013–2014 and 2014–2015) brought unusually high ice coverage to the Great Lakes, and on March 6, 2014, overall ice coverage peaked at 92.5%, the second-highest in recorded history. 0.1 percent of the Great Lakes is covered by ice. 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