Ice transport in Great Lakes

Every winter season the waterbodies referred to as the Laurentian Great Lakes release to the atmosphere the heat stored during the preceding summer season. The rate at which this heat is released varies from lake to lake, mainly because of regional differences in climatic conditions. When the surface waters are chilled to zero degrees centigrade and the rate of heat loss to the atmosphere exceeds the rate at which stored heat is transported to the surface from within the lake, the condition for ice production is present. This condition normally first occurs in sheltered areas where water depths are shallow and migrates outward from the lake shore as the winter cooling proceeds. Lake Erie is the waterbody most prone to complete ice cover. Its shallow depth coupled with strong wind-driven vertical mixing are important factors that contribute to the more rapid release of stored heat: ultimately reducing the temperature to nearly 0⁰C throughout the waterbody (Stewart, 1973). Water Resources and Environmental Engineering Research Report ; no. 79-3