Lake Michigan. (VV Nincic / Flickr)
It’s not quite bathwater warm — that honor goes to Lake Erie — but Lake Michigan’s average surface temperature is a downright comfortable 72.5 degrees at the moment, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory.
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The current reading is quite a jump from the same time last year, when the surface temperature average was 63.8 degrees, and 64 degrees recorded in 2018. Indeed all of the Great Lakes are above normal, temperature-wise, according to the National Weather Service.
Lake Michigan surface temperatures in July 2020, left, and 2019, right. (Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory)
Though a recent string of hot days has sent Lake Michigan’s surface temperature soaring, the effects don’t penetrate the water’s depths.
A dive into the data shows that at bottom, Lake Michigan is a chilly 44.7 degrees, holding fairly steady compared with 44.1 degrees in 2019 and 44.9 degrees in 2018.
Great Lakes surface temperatures July 2020, left, and 2019, right. (Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory)
The recent hot temperatures and fairly light winds have sent the temperatures of the lakes soaring above normal. Check out the current surface-water temperatures! #GreatLakes pic.twitter.com/RaJnjIQmBo
— NWS Gaylord (@NWSGaylord) July 6, 2020
Contact Patty Wetli: @pattywetli | (773) 509-5623 | [email protected]
