Great Lakes

The Great Lakes are a group of five large lakes on or near the United States-Canadian border. They are the largest group of fresh water lakes on the earth and the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence system is the largest fresh-water system in the world. They are sometimes referred to as inland seas.

Lakes

The Great Lakes are (west to east, general direction of water flow):

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• Lake Superior (the largest and deepest, larger than the Czech Republic)
• Lake Michigan (the only one entirely in the U.S., the second largest in volume)
• Lake Huron (the second largest in area)
• Lake Erie (the smallest in volume and shallowest)
• Lake Ontario (the smallest in area, much lower altitude than the rest)

A commonly used mnemonic for remembering the names of the lakes is HOMES, for Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior, although this mnemonic puts the lakes in no particular order. Alternative mnemonics such as Sister Mary Hates Ecumenical Overtures or She Made Harry Eat Onions place them in west-east order.

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Lakes Michigan and Huron, being hydrologically intertwined, are sometimes considered to be one entity: Lake Michigan-Huron. Considered together, Michigan-Huron would be larger in surface area than Lake Superior, but smaller in total water volume.

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A much smaller sixth lake, Lake St. Clair, is part of the Great Lakes system between Lake Huron and Lake Erie, but is not considered one of the "Great Lakes". The system also includes the rivers that connect the lakes: St. Mary's River between Lake Superior and Lake Huron, the St. Clair River between Lake Huron and Lake St. Clair, the Detroit River between Lake St. Clair and Lake Erie, and the Niagara River and Niagara Falls, between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. (Lake Michigan is connected to Lake Huron through the Straits of Mackinac.) Large islands and a peninsula divide Lake Huron into the lake proper and Georgian Bay.

Related Topics:
Lake St. Clair - St. Mary's River - St. Clair River - Detroit River - Niagara River - Niagara Falls - Straits of Mackinac - Georgian Bay

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The lakes are bounded by Ontario (all of the lakes but Michigan), Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan (all but Ontario), Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. Four of the five lakes straddle the U.S.-Canada border; the fifth, Lake Michigan, is entirely within the United States. The Saint Lawrence River, which marks the same international border for a portion of its course, is a primary outlet of these interconnected lakes, and flows through Quebec and past the Gaspé Peninsula to the northern Atlantic Ocean.

Related Topics:
Ontario - Minnesota - Wisconsin - Michigan - Illinois - Indiana - Ohio - Pennsylvania - New York - United States - Saint Lawrence River - Quebec - Gaspé Peninsula - Atlantic Ocean

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Sprinkled throughout the lakes are the approximately 35,000 Great Lakes islands, including Manitoulin Island in Lake Huron, the largest island in any inland body of water, and Isle Royale in Lake Superior, the largest island in the largest lake (each island large enough to itself contain multiple lakes).

Related Topics:
Great Lakes islands - Manitoulin Island - Isle Royale

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The Saint Lawrence Seaway and Great Lakes Waterway opened the Great Lakes to ocean-going vessels. However the move to wider ocean-going container ships - which do not fit through the locks on these routes - has limited shipping on the lakes. Despite their vast size, large sections of the Great Lakes freeze over in winter, and most shipping stops during that season. There are some icebreakers that operate on the lakes.

Related Topics:
Saint Lawrence Seaway - Great Lakes Waterway - Lock - Icebreakers

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The lakes have an effect on weather in the region, known as lake effect. In winter, the moisture picked up by the prevailing winds from the west can produce very heavy snowfall, especially along lakeshores to the east such as in Michigan, Ontario, and New York. The most infamous example is the Blizzard of '77 in which previous heavy snowfall and strong winds running the length of Lake Erie covered Buffalo, New York in drifting snow. The lakes also moderate seasonal temperatures somewhat, by absorbing heat and cooling the air in summer, then slowly radiating that heat in autumn. This temperature buffering produces areas known as "fruit belts", where fruit typically grown farther south can be produced in commercial quantities.

Related Topics:
Lake effect - Blizzard of '77 - Buffalo, New York

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