A lack of ice is reshaping winter life around the Great Lakes

Much of the Great Lakes region — known for frigid winter temperatures, icy lakes and snow-covered forests — has looked bare almost all winter.

Much of the Great Lakes region — known for frigid winter temperatures, icy lakes and snow-covered forests — has looked bare almost all winter. 

Average ice cover is hovering at all-time lows for this time of year. Snowfall continues to lag well behind its usual marks. And long-range forecasts are calling for more unseasonable heat. 

Just 5.6% of the Great Lakes was covered in ice from January to early March, according to James Kessler, a physical scientist with the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory, a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 

“We are trending toward breaking a record” for the least yearly ice cover, on average, in about 50 years, Kessler said. “It’s been a very warm winter.”

The lack of ice cover — which Kessler said was most likely linked to climate change, El Niño and natural variability — could offer a glimpse of the region’s future as the world warms. The lack of snow and lake ice has left some hearty Midwesterners who ski, skate and fish to question how their lifestyles will persist. 

https://www.nbcnews.com/science/environment/lack-ice-reshaping-winter-life-great-lakes-rcna142265

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