EffectsoftheGreatSaltLakeonLocalWeatherandClimate.docVIP

Effects of the Great Salt Lake on Local Weather and Climate Lis Cohen ( HYPERLINK mailto:liscohen@met.utah.edu liscohen@met.utah.edu) Jay Shafer (jason.shafer@lyndonstate.edu) Jenny Esker (jesker@met.utah.edu) The Great Salt Lake has a small but detectable effect on the local climate and weather. It is difficult to determine all of these effects since the lake is a difficult place to take weather observations. The water of the Great Salt Lake affects the temperature and moisture over and around the lake. Water has a higher heat capacity than land and therefore requires more energy to heat up and cool down. This results in cooler daytime high temperatures over and near the Great Salt Lake. This effect can be observed in Table 1 since Antelope Island and Midlake have the two lowest average annual maximum temperatures. Nighttime temperatures, however, would tend to be warmer over the lake compared to the nearby land. The lake also acts as a local moisture source. As a result, the air is more moist near and over the lake compared to the nearby land. However, because the lake is so salty, evaporation is reduced 10–35% compared to fresh water. Table 1 suggests that the Great Salt Lake enhances local climatological precipitation on the south and eastern shores of the lake. This enhancement might be due the dominant wind coming from the west and northwest (westerly, northwesterly) which interacts with the lake, or a combination of other local terrain-induced effects. Recent estimates are that the Great Salt Lake increases the annual precipitation 10–15% over areas south and east of the Great Salt Lake. This changes on a yearly basis since the lake surface area and the number and intensity of storm systems varies. The dominant process by which the lake directly enhances precipitation is through the Great Salt Lake Effect or “lake effect”. The Great Salt Lake Effect is a local phenomena created by the Great Salt Lake where the lake enhances precipitat