More lake-effect snow blankets US Great Lakes region

Context: More lake-effect snow continues to slam the Great Lakes areas in the
United States with snow squalls, strong winds and winter storms. Lake effect
snow occurs when cold air moves over a warmer lake, causing the air to absorb
moisture and warmth from the water. As global temperatures continue to rise and
further warm the Great Lakes, which are in lake-effect zones will continue to
see increasing lake-effect snowfall as a warmer atmosphere will be able to hold
increasing amounts of moisture.

Key points

·       Lake-effect
snowfall: The cold air near the lake's surface warms and picks up moisture from
the lake. The warm, moist air rises and cools, causing the moisture to condense
and freeze into ice crystals. The ice crystals collide and stick together to
form snowflakes, which fall as snow.

Factors - Wind: Wind
speed and direction affect the width, length, and intensity of the snow band. Topography:
Topography can affect the rate of snowfall. Lake surface: A frozen lake doesn't
produce as much lake effect snow because the ice reduces the temperature
difference between the air and the lake.

·       Role
of climate change: Human-caused climate change has the potential to
intensify lake-effect snow events, at least in the short term, according to the
NOAA’s U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit.

·       Location: Lake effect
snow can occur in the Great Lakes region throughout the winter.

·       Intensity: Lake effect
snow can produce intense snowfall rates of 2 to 3 inches per hour or more.

·       Blizzard-like
conditions: Strong winds can accompany lake effect snow, creating blizzard-like
conditions.

·       The
great lakes:  The Great Lakes are five large
freshwater lakes in east-central North America:

Ø  Lake Superior - The largest by
volume and deepest, larger than Scotland or South Carolina.

Ø  Lake Michigan - The second
largest by volume and third largest by area, and the only one entirely in the
U.S.

Ø  Lake Huron - The third
largest by volume and second largest in area.

Ø  Lake Erie - The smallest by
volume and shallowest.

Ø  Lake Ontario - Smallest of the
Great Lakes in North America, but its maximum depth is deeper than Lake Erie
and Lake Huron.

Four of the Great Lakes are
on the border between Canada and the United States of America. They are the
largest freshwater system in the world, representing 21% of the world's fresh
water and about 84% of North America's surface fresh water. Collectively, these
lakes constitute the largest group of freshwater lakes globally.