The long cold winter has resulted in an unusual occurrence: almost all of the Great Lakes have completely frozen over. It’s been 20 years since we’ve last seen this happen.
Cheryl Robertson, an Environmental Science doctoral student at UTSC, researches the impact of climate change on the Great Lakes shipping industry. She recently spoke with UTSC climatologist Bill Gough about this year’s lake ice coverage.
Robertson: I have been hearing a lot of discussion over the Great Lakes ice coverage lately. Do you know why this has become a news topic?
Gough: Almost complete ice coverage of the Great Lakes, as you know, does not happen very often. Last time we saw this much ice was in 1994 and before that, 1979.
It’s not unusual for Georgian Bay and Lake Erie to freeze over, as they are considerably shallower than the other Lakes. But it’s rare to see Lake Superior and Lake Ontario freeze over.