If you are in southern Michigan, like Ann Arbor or Detroit or Lansing or Grand Rapids, you’ll see some pictures of winter on Facebook. Here’s a look at the current water temperatures across the entire Great Lakes. At this time of year when clouds start to increase, we often have to look back a few days to the last clear day. Surface water temperatures on Lake Ontario on October 11, 2020. Water Temperature data is collected daily from sources such as USGS and the US Army Corp of Engineers. We have much colder air heading toward Michigan in about three waves from this Thursday through next Thursday. The water certainly isn’t as warm as our great summer swimming temperatures this year. Even if we have snow just 2,000 feet up in the air, low level warmth will melt the snow as it falls. The satellites have a way of obtaining the surface water temperature if the skies are clear. Scope: GLCFS Products. Water Temperature Map of the Great Lakes (Table-based Web page) The water certainly isn’t as warm as our great summer swimming temperatures this year. Significant snow accumulations with blizzard warnings for the northern Rockies and Montana, while heavy snow is also possible from the Sierra to … Besides water temperature, you can also get information about the weather for today, tomorrow and the upcoming days, surf forecast, as well as the data on sunrise/sunset and moonrise/moonset at a given point on any given day. I still think this is a sign that winter isn’t going to wait until New Year’s Day to start this year. So I don’t want you to get the idea that this is a large winter-type lake effect snow. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your California Privacy Rights (each updated 1/1/20). Data are queried from the NCRFC database late morning each day. While not as pretty, I like the images below of surface water temperatures also obtained from satellites. Surface water temperatures on Lake Michigan on October 9, 2020. Great Lakes CoastWatch is a nationwide National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) program within which the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL) functions as the Great Lakes regional node. The average water temperature now is 76 degrees, with the long-term average water temperature at 70 for this date. winter isn’t going to wait until New Year’s Day to start this year. Next week when the upper-air temperatures bottom out, there will be a 22 degree Celsius temperature difference between the water and the upper-air at 5,000 feet. The snow will be produced by lake effect. Lake Michigan is mostly somewhere between 55 degrees and 60 degrees. Satellite derived surface water temperatures on October 12, 2020. But as cold air and lake effect tries to develop over the next week, Great Lakes water temperatures will play a big role for and against the snow. Water temperature data is important in hydrologic forecasting for monitoring formation of ice on rivers and lakes in our regions. At 20 degrees difference there is a strong lake effect situation possible. So at 22 degrees difference, bursts of precipitation could be heavy. Surface water on Lake Superior on October 9, 2020. The map below shows the near real-time water temperatures in degrees Fahrenheit (°F). One of the most visual ways of obtaining Great Lakes water temperatures is through satellites flying above the lakes. This reporting system is a cooperative project between the NOAA CoastWatch Great Lakes Regional Node located at the NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory in Ann Arbor and the Great Lakes Sea Grant Network. It’s going to be a spotty several inch snow at high spots inland, and importantly- probably in the cold of darkness. The cold enough air for southwest Lower wouldn’t happen until Wednesday or Thursday of next week. IMPORTANT NOTICES: The table below shows the near real-time and average water temperatures in degrees Fahrenheit (°F). Use the near real-time water temperature data with discretion, because they may contain errors. And I apologize now because we have to shift to talking Celsius, as that’s what we meteorologists do when talking about upper air temperatures. Some of the air aloft will be cold enough for snow at inland higher elevations in the Upper Peninsula, northern Lower Michigan and possibly even southwest Lower Michigan. At 17 degrees difference I call it a moderate effect. Note to readers: if you purchase something through one of our affiliate links we may earn a commission. This data the surface water temperature on the Great Lakes coast. Subscribe to MLive.com. Air blowing off the water will continually send 55 degree air into Michigan. Surface water temperatures on Lake Huron on October 10, 2020, Surface water temperatures on Lake Erie on October 12, 2020. But on the other side of the coin is the warming the warm surface water will send into Michigan. Created & maintained by Michigan Sea Grant and the MSU Remote Sensing & GIS Research and Outreach Services. © 2020 Advance Local Media LLC. Lake Huron’s surface water temperature is in the mid-50s. All rights reserved (About Us). Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Lake Ontario has a surface water temperature averaging around 60 degrees. It will be really hard to get snow anywhere within 10 miles of the water. The Great Lakes water temperatures are cooling down. Lake effect needs a big temperature difference between the water surface temperature and the air temperature around 5,000 in the air. Powerful Storm Impacting The West; Eta Approaching The Florida Keys Later Today. NOAA - Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory Home Quick Links About Us Research Data & Products Publications Education. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Clicking on the hyperlinked "Recent Temperatures" will display station information for the location. Great Lakes Surface Water Temperatures. Let’s call Lake Superior about 45 degrees to 50 degrees. The Great Lakes water temperatures are cooling down. I use a 13 degree difference as a start to lake effect. A powerful storm system is impacting the West today. Read exclusive stories only found here. To see the details, select the country and then the city of your interest. But as cold air and lake … Click on a station marker for the near real-time and monthly mean temperature of the station. Water Temperature Table of the Great Lakes. Lake Superior average water temperature this …