Echo

Photo Friday: The edge of space

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Michigan State University Media Sandbox Instructor Troy Hale, with the help of his students, launched a weather balloon containing five HD cameras and a GPS unit into “space” this summer. The balloon launch recorded video at approximately 100,000 ft., or the “edge of space.” It was the second launch. An earlier attempt ended in Lake Erie and the equipment could not be recovered.  Hale said he is planning more experiments, including a launch from Spartan stadium.  

 

Echo

Photo Friday: Battle of Lake Erie

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This week, Echo contributor Karen Schaefer reported on the re-enactment of the 1813 Battle of Lake Erie. This Labor Day weekend, tourists from all over the country flocked to Put-in-Bay, Ohio for the bicentennial celebration. Schaefer captured these photos of the tall ships as they refought the historic battle. Additional links:

NPS Perry Monument
Battle of Lake Erie Bicentennial

Echo

Photo Friday: Lake Michigan sunrise

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Catherine Egger, a real estate agent and Echo reader, was up with the sun when she captured this photo earlier this summer. She shared the Lake Michigan sunrise with some geese at the SS Badger Carferry dock in Manitowoc, Wisc.  

Echo

Photo Friday: Sea cow

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Photographer Tim Trombley of Great Lakes Photography is another reader who answered Echo’s call for photos this summer. He entitled this picture “Sea Cow,” as the pattern of the rocks along the shallows of Lake Superior resembles the markings commonly seen on cows. “I’m always so amazed by the clarity of the water in Lake Superior, as seen in this photo,” Trombley said. “A kayak is the best way to spend time on this lake when the conditions permit.”

Echo

Photo Friday: Snake Island

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Earlier this summer Echo put out a call for Photo Friday submissions, and Terry Heatlie was one of the readers that responded with a photograph taken this July. The photo was captured from the shoreline of Bois Blanc Island in Lake Huron, located southeast of Mackinac Island, Mich. Heatlie, a habitat restoration specialist, pointed out that Snake Island, seen in the horizon, actually appears as a peninsula due to Lake Huron’s low water levels.

Echo

Photo Friday: Scene from a bench

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Photographer Scott Thomas was sitting on a bench overlooking the Oswego Harbor when he captured this photo. Taken on June 23, the photograph shows people walking on the break wall to the West Pierhead Lighthouse in Oswego Harbor in Oswego, New York. See more of Thomas’ photography here.

Echo

Photo Friday: Flotilla along Lake Ontario’s shoreline

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This photo, taken on June 23, captured a group of kayakers in Lake Ontario. They were paddling along the shoreline during the Shoreline Shuffle, an event in Kingston, Ontario that raises awareness about the need for better waterfront planning and more public access to the waterfront. Hundreds participated, by walking, paddling or cycling alongside the lake. The event was organized by the Kingston-based Water Access Group, a community nonprofit that promotes access to public water. This photo was originally tweeted by Lake Ontario Waterkeeper and posted to the organization’s Instagram account.

Nearshore

Photo Friday: Hydrilla Hunting

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The hydrilla, an invasive aquatic plant, has an alarming growth rate clearly illustrated in the photographs above. The photos were captured by the Northeast Illinois Invasive Plant Partnership (NIIPP), an organization that helps prevent and manage plant invasions, and show massive growth of hydrilla in a mere 18 days. Hydrilla grows up to an inch per day and forms dense mats of vegetation at the water’s surface, according to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Early detection can be key in controlling the plant, before it poses a threat to native plants and wildlife, recreational fishing and boating and waterfront property values. NIIPP is seeking volunteers for a Hydrilla Hunt, a program that encourages Illinois residents to learn how to identify hydrilla and keep a lookout for the plant at local lakes, ponds and rivers.

Echo

Photo Friday: Moonrise over Lake Michigan

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Echo reader Jodie Opie, a fan of the Photo Friday feature, answered our call for photo submissions. This photograph was taken on May 24 in Kenosha, Wis. and captured a full moon rising over a dusky Lake Michigan.