Lake Superior has the greatest impact on local snowfall amounts with 100% more winter precipitation falling downwind compared to Lakes Erie and Ontario that only have precipitation increases of 15% from the lake-effects.
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The heaviest lake-effect snow in the United States falls on the Tug Hill Plateau, south of Watertown, N.Y., at the eastern end of Lake Ontario, making this region one of the snowiest places in the United States. Syracuse, which is south of Tug Hill, is one of the snowiest bigger cities in the United States.
Lake-effect snow is a frequent contributor to our seasonal snowfall in Chicago and with Lake Michigan almost ice free, the lake-effect snow machine is open for business provided a cold wind is blowing in our favor in the right direction. Nearly 93% of the Great Lakes does not have significant ice cover.
Lake effect snow is common across the Great Lakes region during the late fall and winter. Lake Effect snow occurs when cold air, often originating from Canada, moves across the open waters of the Great Lakes.
Lake Erie averages the highest ice coverOf the five Great Lakes, Lake Erie typically reaches the highest annual maximum ice cover, often exceeding 80 percent.
Of the five Great Lakes, Lake Erie typically reaches the highest annual maximum ice cover, often exceeding 80 percent. Throughout the past fifty years, Lake Erie has reached a complete ice cover (100% ice coverage) three times – in 1978, 1979, and 1996, and reached 99.8% in 1977.
This storm was the result of a phenomenon called “lake effect snow.” It's one of the main reasons why areas near big lakes, like the Great Lakes, get such remarkable snowstorms. Such storms usually occur between November and February, not October.
Lake-effect snow can form on small lakes just as it does in the Great Lakes. Salt Lake City, Fort Worth and Carson City, Nevada have all had bouts of snow from lakes. Inland lake-effect and ocean-effect doesn't just occur in the United States.
The farther cold air travels over the lake surface, the more moisture is evaporated from the lake. A long “fetch” – the distance over water – often results in more lake-effect snow than a shorter one. Imagine a wind out of the west that is perfectly aligned so it blows over the entire 241-mile length of Lake Erie.