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The Great Lakes' middle latitude location insures large seasonal differences
in the amount of energy received from the sun, and these differences account
for the seasonal temperature variations, which lead to wind and storms.
For instance, when a storm first moves over Lake Erie, the temperature drops, and the wind changes direction. This disturbs the water in the lake and causes it to move in the same direction as the storm is moving. Since most storms move from the west toward the east, water is moved by the storm into the eastern end of the lake, which narrorws quickly (refer to Lake Erie map). The water level in the eastern end of the lake raised. This is called a surge. (from ES-EAGLS: Climate & Water Movement, p.49) |
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1. What is the direction taken by most
storms in the Great Lakes
region? 2. When considering both orientation and volume of the Great Lakes, which lakes are most likely to be affected by storm surges? |
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The Great
Lakes Forecasting System provides a "Nowcast" model for what is happening
on the Great Lakes' water surface and the wind above. For some lakes additional
information is available about temperature and movement at depth.
Technical animations of storms are available using these data. |
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1. Earth Systems - Education Activities for Great Lakes Schools (ES-EAGLS)
Climate and Water Movement
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A figure showing the relationship between wind direction, water movement, and water level (source: Great Lakes Environmental Atlas) -
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1. Animated Lake Erie Wind Setup Events (1997 and 1998) http://www.lre.usace.army.mil/levels/980217.html 2. Interactive Marine Observation: Recent Wave and Wind Data http://www.cciw.ca/glimr/water-levels/intro.html 3. Great Lakes Forecasting System, Marine Observation Station http://superior.eng.ohio-state.edu/marobs/nf-index.html 4. Great Lakes Ice Data http://www.glerl.noaa.gov/data/char/ 5. Storm Probability Table http://www.lre.usace.army.mil/levels/stpbtb.html |
