Climate

Seven of the snowiest campuses in the nation, right here in the Great Lakes basin

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Seven of the 10 snowiest college campuses across the nation are in the Great Lakes states, according to a list recently released by Accuweather. Blame that lake effect for making winters in our parts exceptionally snowy. As cold air gusts across the lakes, it meets the warm air rising off the water, creating lots of snow by the time the mixture hits the shore. Campuses in the region hold the top five and the eighth and ninth slots on Accuweather’s list. They even beat out the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Climate

Photo Friday: Ice atop Lake Erie

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When last week’s snowstorm and cold spell made its way through the Great Lakes, nearly 90 percent of Lake Erie froze over, according to the NASA Earth Observatory. The colorized picture above shows ice (pale blue) and snow (blue-green) formed on top of the lake. A report by Jeff Masters, director of meteorology at Wunderground.com, showed that these high levels of ice coverage had not been seen on the Great Lakes since January 1994.

Climate

Ice forming along Chicago River

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The Chicago River just west of where it enters Lake Michigan with what is known as  brash ice, floating fragments of ice usually less than two meters across. Image: Greg Monahan

Climate

Photo Friday: Warm Great Lakes clash with frigid air to produce steam fog

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This color-enhanced picture from the NASA Earth Observatory shows how the cold air moving across warmer waters of Lake Michigan and Lake Superior during this week’s arctic storm transformed water vapor into steam fog. NASA says one of its satellites on  Jan. 6 captured the data used here to illustrate the difference between snow (bright orange), water clouds (white), and mixed clouds (peach). Here’s what steam fog looked like near Chicago and from the ground view.

Climate

Snowy mitten

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Take a look at the NASA Earth Observatory’s remarkable photo of the gigantic snowstorm this week that affected all of the Great Lakes region, plus many other states.

Climate

Michigan residents support disaster relief after Philippine typhoon

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Public interest in (and donations for) the devastating Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines is alarmingly low compared to similar recent international disasters, a recent report says.

But some Michigan residents, like Hollyann Powers and her family, are working to make sure information gets out – and leads to action.

Climate

Even water rich Great Lakes residents must adapt to climate change

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According to a new report by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, 40 percent of the world’s population will live under severe water stress by 2050. While the Great Lakes region is water rich, the report suggest that even water wealthy areas should work toward adaptive policies to secure freshwater’s future.