 |
 |
       |
 |
Summer Discovery Cruises
Michigan Sea Grant (5/20)
Summer Discovery Cruises are open to the public (ages 6 and up) and will take place on the lower Detroit River and Lake St. Clair during the period June 22 through August 17. The Living Lake, Great Lakes Science for Teachers and Eagle’s Eye Nature Cruises are a few of the cruise themes offered this year.
A View From the Lake
(5/19)
Get ready for the 2008 View From the Lake trips aboard the L.L. Smith, Jr. Research Vessel. This year's program will focus on the importance of forests and trees in protecting water quality and habitat in Lake Superior and its many rivers and streams. View this summer's these trips.
Lake St. Clair festival takes students into water
The Detroit News (5/16)
The Lake St. Clair festival featured interactive presentations and exhibits designed to teach students about the importance of water, how it's used in daily life and why it needs to be safeguarded from pollution.
2008 Lake Michigan Exploration Workshop
The Centers for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence (5/14)
4th-10th grade teachers and non-formal educators from the Great Lakes region are invited to participate in the Lake Michigan Exploration Workshop, August 2-8, in Chicago. This workshop is designed to promote Great Lakes and ocean sciences in formal and informal education and forge lasting relationships between science researchers and educators.
Drinking Water Week
American Water Works Association (5/6)
Drinking Water Week, May 4-10, is a unique opportunity for water professionals and the communities they serve to join together to recognize the vital role water plays in our daily lives.
American Wetlands Month
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (5/2)
This May will mark the 18th anniversary of American Wetlands Month, a time when EPA and its partners celebrate the vital importance of wetlands to the Nation's ecological, economic, and social health. It is also a great opportunity to discover and teach others about the important role that wetlands play in our environment and the significant benefits they provide.
What's going on in your neighborhood this month? Meet other people and learn together at recreational and educational events! Our new dynamic calendar is updated daily with current educational events.
Introduction
Three types of water level fluctuations
History repeating itself: Hydrographs illustrate historical levels
How levels and flows are measured
Effects of lake level fluctuations
References and more information
Water levels are part of the ebb and flow of nature.
The difference between the amount of water coming into a lake and the amount going out is the determining factor in whether the water level will rise, fall or remain stable. When several months of above-average precipitation occur with cooler, cloudy conditions that cause less evaporation, the levels gradually rise. Likewise, prolonged periods of lower-than-average precipitation and warmer temperatures typically result in lowering of water levels.
The recent decline of Great Lakes' water levels, now at lows not seen since the mid-1960s, is due mostly to evaporation during the warmer-than-usual temperatures of the past three years, a series of mild winters, and below-average snowpack in the Lake Superior basin.
Because the major factors affecting the water supply to the lakes--precipitation, evaporation and runoff--cannot be controlled or accurately predicted for more than a few weeks into the future, the influence of man-made regulation of lake levels is very limited. Nature has most of the control, adding water through snow and rain, and taking it away through evaporation.
Graphic: Lake Superior's south shore, April 2000.
Detailed Map: The Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River system
