Great Lakes Warmer Than Normal But Still Chilly
With the holiday weekend upon us, you might be considering visiting one of our Great Lakes. On the 100th anniversary of Michigan's DNR, they stated that 51% of people said they wanted to drive to the nearest body of water which is easy to do while living in Michigan. Mlive says the lakes are warmer than normal but still chilly!
Lake Superior is warmer than usual but the temps are still in the upper 30s and lower 40s. We're still a bit away from its high of 60 degrees.
Surface water temperatures on Lake Michigan and Lake Huron is currently nearing 63 degrees. Lake Michigan is about four degrees warmer than average, and has been warmer than average all year.
Lake Erie is already nearing 70 degrees. The lake-wide average water temperature for Lake Erie is about seven degrees warmer than normal for this time of year.
Lake Ontario is still way too cold to swim in. It's a deep lake and normally quite cold. The typical temperature for this time of year for Lake Ontario is 42 degrees. Right now, it's already up to 56. That's a 14 degree swing.
The air temperature has been unseasonable cooler but this has not affected the water temps!
The Great Lakes are the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total area and second-largest by total volume, containing 21% of the world's surface fresh water by volume. Wikipedia says of the Great Lakes,
"Because of their sea-like characteristics, such as rolling waves, sustained winds, strong currents, great depths, and distant horizons, the five Great Lakes have long been called inland seas. By surface area, Lake Superior is the second-largest lake in the world and the largest freshwater lake. Lake Michigan is the largest lake that is entirely within one country."
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