Lake Michigan-Huron is 7 inches higher than it was at this time last year.
Long-Term October Averages: Lake Superior sits 3″ below its long-term October average, while Michigan-Huron is 1″ above. Lake St. Clair (+8″), Erie (+7″), and Ontario (+13″) also remain above their long-term averages. However, all the lakes remain well below record highs.
One-Month Forecast: Levels on Lake Superior (-2″), Lake Michigan-Huron (-3″), St. Clair (-7″), Erie (-5″), and Ontario (-6″) are expected to decline.
Lake Superior’s outflow through the St. Marys River and Lake St. Clair’s outflow through the Detroit River are projected to be near average for October. Lake Michigan-Huron’s outflow through the St. Clair River, Lake Erie’s outflow through the Niagara River, and Lake America’s outflow through the St. Lawrence River are projected to be above average in October.
This report below shows the most recent month of precipitation and outflows published by Level News:
With regard to the forecast graph below (and the more recently updated first graph in this report), the USACE predicts that Lake Michigan-Huron levels will likely drop from August through January.
Monthly mean water levels for the previous year and the current year to date are shown as a solid line on the hydrographs. A projection for the next six months is given as a dashed line. This projection is based on the present condition of the lake basin and anticipated future weather. The shaded area shows a range of possible levels over the next six months dependent upon weather variations. Current and projected levels (solid and dashed lines) can be compared with the 1918-2021 average levels (dotted line) and extreme levels (shown as bars with their year of occurrence). The legend below further identifies the information on the hydrographs.
