Lake Erie Ice Cover Climatology Basin Averaged Ice Cover: Winters 1898-2002

摘要

Spatial averages of ice concentrations for the west, center, and eastern basins of Lake Erie are presented for a 105- winter base period (1898-2002) for daily, monthly, and annual time periods. Dates of first ice, last ice, and ice duration were also examined. The daily and monthly data for the contemporary 1973-2002 winter period were used to calculate statistics and to define and compare the seasonal progression of ice cover for each lake basin. Century trends included later first ice dates, earlier last ice dates, and shorter duration of the ice cover. These trends were also observed during the contemporary (1973-2002) period.