But even without 100 % ice cover, the icy ponds are getting a significant impact on the atmosphere around them.
"The greatest impact we'll see is shutting lower the river effect snow," stated Guy Meadows, director of Michigan Technological University's Great Ponds Research Center in Houghton, on Michigan's snowy Upper Peninsula. Lake effect snow happens when weather systems in the north and west get evaporating lake water that's warmer compared to air, then drop it as being snow after reaching land, he described. An ice cover prevents that evaporation.
Ice around the Great Ponds may also lead to more frigid temps, Meadows noted, since the warmer lake water will not have the opportunity to moderate the temps of individuals same northerly weather systems the actual way it usually does.
If there the elements is cold and calm, the ice can grow fairly rapidly, since the temperature of water is close to the freezing point. However, strong winds can split up ice that's already created, pushing it into open water and piling it up and down both above and underneath the tube.
The Soo Tresses are presently closed for that winter, and all sorts of shipping on Lake Superior has stopped, but ice buildups can cause issues in the spring. Even icebreaker ships can't do much about ice buildup that may be around 25 or 30 ft deep..
The ice may also have results though. Lake Superior's whitefish plus some other seafood, for instance, need ice cover to safeguard their breeding beds from winter storms. Heavy ice, therefore, should result in good fishing.
Meadows stated invasive nuisance species happen to be thriving at the end of Lake Superior recently largely due to warmer temps, so "cooling things down again is a positive thing for the reason that sense."
Cite This Site:
Michigan Technological College. "Frost nova within the Great Ponds: Ponds nearly frozen completely for brand spanking new in two decades.Inch ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 19 Feb 2014.