Some spots on the Great Lakes have had plunging water temperatures in the past few days due to the stiff north and northeast winds. Don't be surprised if the water along the shoreline of West Michigan is colder than last week.
The strong north and northeast winds over the past few days have caused what is called "upwelling." Upwelling is when wind blows the surface water in one direction and colder water from below is pulled up to replace it.
Typically the upwelling occurs along the Wisconsin and Illinois shorelines of Lake Michigan, due to normally westerly winds. But in the past few days with this colder weather we have had strong north and northeast winds. That wind direction will take the warmer water near the shore of West Michigan and move it out into the lake. Then colder water will be pulled up from below.
Notice Muskegon's buoy thermometer recorded a water temperature drop from near 60 degrees to around 41 degrees in 24 hours.
Now this doesn't mean that every beach along Lake Michigan will have colder water than last week. You may want to check the beach water temperature this weekend, and if it is too cold, move on down to the next beach. The satellite photo of water temperatures shows small pockets of cold mixed with warmer water.
The water temperatures even in the warmest spots are still cooler than normal.
Look at the satellite image of water temperatures for Lake Superior. Much of the surface of Lake Superior still has temperatures in the 40s.
And yes, just like the cold water of winter has helped produce a cooler summer, the cooler water now will probably help bring on an earlier fall and winter. That is unless we see a reversal in the upper air pattern.
What beaches do you recommend right now based on warmest water temperatures? Help us all below.
MLive Meteorologist Mark Torregrossa has been forecasting Michigan weather for more than 20 years. He's been chief meteorologist at three television news stations in Michigan, and he's an avid gardener and hunter. Email him at firstname.lastname@example.org and find him on Facebook at facebook.com/mark.torregrossa and Twitter @weathermanmark