Information gathered by autonomous vehicles, such as the wave glider, helps fine-tune satellite algorithms (instructions that tell a satellite how to interpret what it’s seeing). Autonomous wave glider that was recently deployed into Lake Superior by the MTU Great Lakes Research Center. The chemical and biological data collected will help researchers understand more about the Lake Superior foodweb and also be used to validate satellite information.
The NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL) and Michigan Technological University (MTU) Great Lakes Research Center recently teamed up on the deployment of a wave glider in Lake Superior. 2022 ice forecast compared to previous years The temperature and moisture content of these air masses play a key role in determining ice cover. North Pacific or the Arctic) that will reach the Great Lakes region as weather systems move across the continent. The position of the jet stream largely dictates the origin of the air masses (e.g. These teleconnection patterns impact Great Lakes regional climate and ice cover by influencing the location of the westerly jet stream over North America. These projected teleconnection pattern indices are produced by other agencies such as NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center. Our research has shown that the interannual variability of Great Lakes ice cover is heavily influenced by four large-scale climate patterns referred to as teleconnections: the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO), the El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO). Great Lakes ice cover as of JanuWhat do global air patterns have to do with Great Lakes ice? Historically, much of the major freezing of the Great Lakes happens in February. Lake Ontario = 12.9% (long-term average AMIC is 31.4%)Īlthough ice cover is only around 15% right now, there’s still plenty of winter left for further freezing.Lake Erie = 70.7% (long-term average AMIC is 81.9%).Lake Huron = 51.1% (long-term average AMIC is 65.0%).Lake Michigan = 37.9% (long-term average AMIC is 41.4%).Lake Superior = 52.3% (long-term average AMIC is 62.3%).The predicted maximum seasonal ice cover for each lake is as follows: In addition to forecasting maximum ice cover for the entire Great Lakes basin, GLERL’s experimental ice forecast also predicts ice cover lake-by-lake. Jia Wang uses a statistical regression model based on global teleconnections (air circulation patterns) to create GLERL’s seasonal ice forecast. Photo credit: Angela PredhommeĮvery year at the start of winter, GLERL’s ice climatologist Dr. Icy Lake Huron shoreline in Tawas City, MI in January, 2022.