The Lake Erie response to the January 26, 1978, cyclone

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Abstract
A descriptive analysis of the reponse of Lake Erie to the passage of the blizzard cyclone of January 26, 1978, is presented. This intense extratropical cyclone, the worst ever to cross the Ohio Valley and Great Lakes region of the United States, set numerous record low sea level pressure readings at nearly every recording station surrounding Lake Erie and subjected the lake region to sharp temperature drops and high winds. The lake surface was significantly ice covered during the storm event; it remained virtually intact on the entire Western Basin, and partial ice cover breakup occurred over the Central Basin. The investigation of the water level fluctuations induced by the cyclone are based on data acquired from normal meteorological and water level monitoring stations surrounding the lake. The most unusual aspects of the water surface fluctuations include the observance of a pressure suction induced rise in water level in the Western Basin before the storm passed north of the lake; a maximum storm surge setup occurring between Marblehead, Ohio, and Port Colborne, Canada, and not between the ends of the lake; and a separate oscillatory surge occurring at Port Stanley, Canada. The probable causes and reasons for these fluctuations are thoroughly analyzed in the context of existing theories that deal with how a lake surface responds to external atmospheric forcing functions such as wind stress, sea level pressure changes, and resonance. The effect of the ice cover on the water level fluctuations is also presented.

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