Lake Champlain Ice Formation and Ice Free Dates and Predictions from Meteorological Indicators,
Abstract
A 19-year record of the annual closing and opening dates of operation of the Lake Champlain ferry at Grand Isle, Vermont, which are controlled by the lake's ice cover, was made available to CRREL. These navigation records accurately approximated the freeze-over and breakup dates for the ferry crossing area between Gordon Landing, Vermont, and Cumberland Head, New York. When compared statistically with water temperature and climatological data for the same years at nearby Lake Champlain locations, the dates allowed accurate predictions of ice formation. From nearby air temperature records, cumulative freezing degree-day (deg C) curves were plotted for each year of record, and ice formation dates and standard deviations were predicted with considerable accuracy. Several methods of predicting ice formation on Lake Champlain were attempted. The most accurate approach used a combination of water temperatures and freezing degree-days. The influence of wind speed on ice cover formation and prediction are also discussed in the report. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Nov 01, 1979
- Accession Number
- ADA079640
Entities
People
- Mary-lynn Brown
- Roy E. Bates
Organizations
- Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory