Does Lake Michigan act like an ocean?

Scientists might not classify the big lakes as seas, but they often study them as if they were. “The modelers here who work on things like currents and waves and ice use ocean models,” says Lauren Fry, a principal investigator at NOAA's Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL) in Ann Arbor, Michigan.



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The lakes have more coastline than the East and West coasts combined! While ocean waves are created by distant storm systems, waves on the Great Lakes are formed by localized winds.

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The answer is yes, our Great Lakes do have tides that occur twice each day, but they are much smaller in scale and barely noticeable unlike the ocean.

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So you know how when you go for a dip in the ocean and you come out covered in salt crust and with the distinct stench of rotting seaweed? Yeah, that doesn't happen in the Great Lakes. The water may be colder, but it's wonderfully clean.

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Fry, however, would not call the Great Lakes inland seas—at least not scientifically. Despite their size, the lakes are beholden to what happens on the land that surrounds them in a way larger seas are not.

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The blue in Lake Michigan and Lake Huron is sediment brought to the surface when strong winds churned the lakes. The green in Lake Erie and in Lake Huron's Saginaw Bay is algae, which builds on the surface when winds are calm.

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Lake Michigan is generally clean and safe for swimming but it can become contaminated with harmful bacteria.

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In April 2018, two meteotsunamis formed on Lake Michigan in the same day. Other meteotsunamis on the Great Lakes have risen up to 7, 10 and 12 feet in the last 31 years. The largest meteotsunami was recorded in Croatia in 1978.

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Lake Superior is the world's largest freshwater lake by area (31,700 mi2 /82,100 km2). It is also the coldest and deepest of the Great Lakes, with a maximum depth of 406 meters (1,332 feet). By most measures, it is the healthiest of all the Great Lakes.

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Chicago's entire 28-mile Lake Michigan shoreline is man-made. The original sand dune and swale topography has been dramatically altered. Before American settlement, storms changed the shoreline, either by building up or eroding sand.

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Lake Superior is the largest of the Great Lakes by surface area and volume. It is like a mini-freshwater ocean, you can't even see the other side from the Wisconsin shoreline.

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“The waves hit you every three to five seconds in the Great Lakes, where in the ocean it might be 10 to 12 seconds between waves,” said Guy Meadows, a Michigan senior research scientist.

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Lake Michigan in particular is the roughest of the Great Lakes, and poses a major risk to those thinking of taking a dip.

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Climate change is fueling more extreme Lake Michigan Water levels, along with stronger winds and heavier storms. These conditions exacerbate erosion, beach loss, and damage along the shore.

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Should you shower after swimming in Lake Michigan? Take a shower: Bathe yourself after swimming in a lake in order to maintain hygiene and stay clean. If bacteria has not entered your body, it may be actively resting on your skin, creating a rash or finding an open cut to infect.

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A north-northeast wind has pushed the warmer surface water along the Michigan shore back toward the middle of Lake Michigan and brought up colder water from well beneath the surface. This process is called upwelling.

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Lake Erie and Lake Michigan are ranked the third and fourth most polluted lakes in the United States, according to nature website AZ Animals.

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There is an abundance of life and different creatures you might find in Lake Michigan. Whales just aren't one of them. See all of the animals you can find in the lake here.

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