Weather conditions:
Hot and humid conditions were present in the Great Lakes basin
this week. Temperatures reached the 90 degree mark in many
places on Wednesday and Thursday. A stubborn frontal
system also touched off several rounds of thunderstorms as it
interacted with the hot and humid air mass. The front will
linger in the Great Lakes for the weekend, leading to more
showers and thunderstorms. Heavy rain is a good bet as
storms will be slow moving. Unsettled weather is expected
to linger into next week.
Lake Level Conditions:
Presently, all of the Great Lakes remain higher than they were
at this time last year. Lake Superior is 15 inches above
last year's level while lakes Michigan-Huron and St. Clair are 7
inches higher than they were a year ago. Lakes Erie and
Ontario are 8 inches and 9 inches, respectively, higher than
they were last year. Lake Superior is projected to rise 1
inch over the next 30 days, while Lake Michigan-Huron is
predicted to remain around the same level. Lakes St.
Clair, Erie, and Ontario, however are forecasted to fall 3 to 5
inches during the next month. All of the Great Lakes are
expected to remain above their water levels of a year ago over
the next few months.
Current outflows / channel conditions:
In June, outflow through the St. Mary's, St. Clair, and Detroit
Rivers was below average. Niagara River's outflow was near
average, while outflow from the St. Lawrence River was above
average.
Alerts:
Users of the Great Lakes, connecting channels and St. Lawrence
River should keep informed of current conditions before
undertaking any activities that could be affected by changing
water levels. Mariners should utilize navigation charts
and refer to current water level readings.
SUPERIOR HURON ST. CLAIR ERIE
ONTARIO
Expected
water lvl for
601.7 578.2 574.5 572.0
246.4
July 18th
in feet
Chart datum,
601.1 577.5
572.3 569.2
243.3
in feet
Difference from
chart datum,
+8 +9
+26 +34
+37
in inches
Difference from
June 18, 2008,
+4
+2 +2
+1
-4
in inches*
Difference from
July 18, 2007, +15 +7
+7
+8 +9
in inches*
Difference from
long-term monthly -4 -14 -4 +2
+4
average level for
July, in inches
Difference from
highest recorded -16
-45
-33
-26
-22
monthly mean lvl (1950) (1986) (1986)
(1986) (1947)
for July, in inches
Difference from
lowest recorded +18
+18
+24 +36
+37
monthly mean lvl (1926)
(1964) (1934)
(1934) (1934)
for July, in inches
Projected change in
levels by Aug. 18, +1 0
-3 -4 -5
2008, in inches
ALL DATA SHOWN IN THIS SUMMARY REFERENCED TO IGLD 1985
*VALUES FOR SPECIFIC DAY ARE BASED ON 3-DAY AVERAGE AROUND
SPECIFIED DATE
Further Information: Please visit the following web sites for
more detailed information:
http://www.lre.usace.army.mil/glhh
http://www.ijc.org
http://www.lre.usace.army.mil/Storage/HH/IJC/Superior/index.shtml
http://www.islrbc.org/
http://www.great-lakes.net/envt/water/levels/hydro.html
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