Will Summer 2026 (and El Niño) bring more barefoot aurora?

Posted on by farlane
Barefoot Aurora by Lake Superior Photo

Barefoot Aurora by Lake Superior Photo

The weather has been getting a lot of (justifiable) bad press lately so I figured I’d try and put a little positive spin on news shared by Michigan Public that NOAA is forecasting a potentially strong El Niño weather pattern developing for Michigan this summer:

“Even though the evidence is still early, this could be a very significant event in 2026 and lingering into 2027,” says Daniel Swain, climate scientist with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources.

A strong El Niño would drive up average global temperatures. The hottest years on record generally occur in years when El Niño is active, because El Niño occurs when the Eastern Pacific is hotter than usual. “Its function in the global earth system is to release heat from the deeper oceans that has been temporarily stored there,” Swain says. “El Niño allows that subducted heat to be unearthed.”

That dynamic played out in a big way in 2023 and 2024, when a long, strong El Niño pattern helped shatter global temperature records. 2023 smashed the record for the hottest year ever recorded on Earth, only to be surpassed by temperatures in 2024.

Last week Shawn shared this photo saying that she’s eagerly anticipating the return of nights watching the aurora barefoot so it looks like El Niño is gonna help with that. You can see lots more amazing photos from Lake Superior Photo on Facebook. You can also visit the Lake Superior Photo website to view & purchase photos and for information about their Marquette gallery along with photography workshops, tours, and guiding.

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Angry waters across Michigan

Posted on by farlane
There used to be a bridge here by Nate

There used to be a bridge here by Nate Griswold

The state of Michigan has been absolutely pummeled by severe weather over the last week, and it’s taking a serious & unprecedented toll on our roads & bridges as demonstrated in the photos my friend Nate shared with me from Johnson Rd near Kaleva.

Just a few of the impacted areas include the pictured damage near Kaleva, flooding in Frankenmuth, Traverse City’s Boardman River bridging its banks & taking out bridges (for sure check out the 40 photos+ of the damage by Madi Taylor), a washout on the M-119 “Tunnel of Trees”, flooding along the Muskegon River, worries at dams including Mio Dam, significant damage across southeast Michigan including Ann Arbor & Metro Detroit, and an evacuation order in Cheboygan due to concerns about the Cheboygan Dam failing discussed yesterday. I could go on and on, but I’m just going to share hopes that everyone can stay safe and look in on their neighbors!!

CBS Detroit has an overview of the concerns and how a historic late winter snowstorm combined with an extremely rapid warmup & heavy spring rains to create this perfect storm of terrible outcomes.

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Holding back the flood at Cheboygan Dam

Posted on by farlane
Cheboygan Dam by MSP Emergency Management & Homeland Security Division

Cheboygan Dam by MSP Emergency Management & Homeland Security Division

Northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula are absolutely drowning in floodwater. One place that is very apparent is Cheboygan, where Gov Whitmer declared a State of Emergency on Friday due to rising water levels at the Cheboygan Lock and Dam Complex.

I’ve been following this over the weekend and the level of all hands on deck activity is pretty incredible, certainly a testament to lessons learned by the collapse of the Edenfield & Sanford Dams six years ago. Michigan Department of Transportation has closed the US-23 bascule bridge in Cheboygan near the dam by raising its deck to the open position. The foundation of the bridge (built in 1940) is susceptible to erosion during flood events. Traffic is being detoured to the Lincoln Avenue Bridge, and residents are urged to follow the Cheboygan County Sheriff’s Department for the latest updates.

There’s more photos of efforts at the dam below along with an absolutely wild video from the dam shared a couple of days ago by Michigan Storm Chasers on YouTube.

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Is it Spring in Michigan? That depends on where you live…

Posted on by farlane
Melting by smiles7

Melting by smiles7

mLive’s Mark Torregrossa shares that Michigan’s northern & southern halves will have completely different temperature patterns this week (see the NOAA temperature graphic for Thursday below):

For southern Michigan, we have three spring-like days and four almost-wintry days. For northern Michigan, we have a slight taste of spring temperatures Tuesday and Wednesday, with the rest of the days more like winter. It looks much warmer in the first week of April.

Julie took this shot of the Mighty Mac back in April of 2021. Here’s a photo of the ice at Tahquamenon Falls breaking free that she shared 10 years ago plus a shot of a classic spring skiing slush pond from the other day. Follow her on Flickr for the latest!

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Michigan digging out of historic storm

Posted on by farlane
Neighbors by Kevin Povenz

Neighbors by Kevin Povenz

Although Michigan is still digging out of last weekend’s storm, it’s clear that it was one for the record books with Marquette & Negaunee already setting 2-day snow total records. mLive shares some of the eye-popping snow totals from around the state. Here are a few:

  • Round Lake – 52 inches (Alger County near Munising)
  • Cusino Lake – 48 1/2 inches (Schoolcraft County in the UP)
  • Mount Arvon – 39 inches (Baraga County also Michigan’s highest point)
  • Wolverine & Petoskey – 28 & 28.7 were tops in the Lower Peninsula
  • Houghton & Hancock normally snow magnets had just 4 inches!

Kevin says that although the storm squashed any hope of seeing the Northern Lights in southwest Michigan, it can be defeated with high quality snow blowers 😉 See more in his Street Photography gallery and for sure follow him on Flickr for his latest … which usually includes eagles!

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Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is ground zero for bomb cyclone

Posted on by farlane
Road Closed by Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Road Closed by Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

The blizzard that just rocked Michigan was predicted to be big, and mLive just shared that the National Weather Service Marquette has confirmed new records set by this storm:

Marquette’s two-day snowfall total of 36.3 inches breaks the all-time two-day snowfall record of 31.9 inches, which was set on March 13-14 in 1997. Weather records for the NWS Marquette area go back to 1959. Also, a one-day snowfall record was set in Marquette on Monday, with 21.7 inches of snow falling. This breaks Marquette’s old record of 7.7 inches that was set in 2013. Intense snowfall rates of 2 to 3 inches per hour helped set the record.

As the snow numbers are being totaled, the Upper Peninsula and parts of the northern Lower Peninsula continue to dig out from the storm. Many roads remain closed and local law enforcement and public works officials are asking people to stay home as they try to plow the main routes. In some areas, the back roads likely won’t be plowed for days.

For sure stay safe & check on your neighbors if you can! As always, Michigan Storm Chasers are a great resource, and let me also suggest Lake Superior Photo as a great Marquette resource!

The Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore shared this photo with news that Sand Point Rd and all park facilities including the Munising Falls Visitor Center will remain closed through today due to blizzard conditions. Here are a couple more photos they shared recently to prophetically remind folks that winter isn’t over yet!

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Let the sun shine brightly in March

Posted on by farlane

Let me first wish a very happy 313 Day to the city of Detroit & all who love it! There is no city that I would rather be from, and none that I’d rather live in. Then let me also say that I think it’s kind of hilarious that I was looking for the perfect photo to celebrate the city and already had it queued up for a post!

Let the sun shine bright on the city by Scott Laidlaw

Let the sun shine bright on the city by Scott Laidlaw

USA Today shares that the dramatic increase in daylight in March is part of a fascinating and unbalanced yearly cycle:

While sunrise and sunset times are constantly on the move, sunlight rapidly increases in March (and rapidly decreases in September). During the month of March, some parts of the United States will add over an hour-and-a-half of sun by the end of the month.

…The increase in daylight, or the amount of time the sun spends above the horizon, will be most obvious in the northernmost parts of the U.S., which will face the sun more directly as the Northern Hemisphere tilts toward the sun on Earth’s axis at a 23.5-degree angle, according to Brandon Buckingham, a meteorologist at AccuWeather.

FYI, Michigan will pick up between 80 and 100 minutes of daylight this month.

Scott took this back in 2020 and he notes how 3-D it looks. You can see more in his massive Detroit gallery & for sure follow him on Flickr for the latest!

The mural was the 100th painted by Detroit artist Waleed Johnson which is pretty amazing when you consider how much work it is to paint a mural!

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Friday Tornadoes devastate Southwest Michigan

Posted on by farlane
Union Lake tornado damage by MSP Emergency Management & Homeland Security Division

Union Lake tornado damage by MSP Emergency Management & Homeland Security Division

Fox 2 Detroit reports that the National Weather Service has confirmed that three separate tornadoes ripped through southwestern Michigan Friday night:

A lone supercell developed in La Porte County, Indiana, that moved up into Cass, St Joseph, and Branch counties in Michigan, where the death and destruction happened. Four people have died, including a 12-year-old boy in Cass County, and three people in Union City. Penni Jo Guthrie was identified as one of the three Union City victims. The other two have not been identified publicly yet.

…The National Weather Service confirmed a tornado had touched down in Union City. An EF-3 tornado with winds reaching at least 150mph has been confirmed according to their initial assessment. An EF-2 tornado was confirmed to have touched down in Three Rivers, and a third tornado was confirmed in the Edwardsburg area, but no rating was assigned to it as of Saturday evening.

Governor Whitmer activated the State Emergency Operations Center Friday night & you can head over to their Facebook for some Michigan State Police Drone overflight videos.

Disasters are always magnets for scams, so it’s important to research who’s asking and where it’s going. The good people over at Michigan Storm Chasers are sharing great info on their Facebook & have created an Amazon Wish List for relief efforts that I encourage you to consider. If you want to include something for the four legged homies who are also hit hard by disaster, the Humane Society of Southwest Michigan is a good option.

Here’s a video of the tornado that caused the damage in the photo above. There’s something extra terrifying about seeing a tornado across a frozen lake.

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Ever seen a Ghost Apple?

Posted on by farlane
Ghost Apple on Fruit Ridge by Andrew Sietsema

Ghost Apple on Fruit Ridge by Andrew Sietsema

Robinette’s Apple Haus & Winery shared this photo taken several years ago by Andrew Sietsma on West Michigan’s Fruit Ridge, asking Ever seen a Ghost Apple?

This rare winter phenomenon was captured in the Fruit Ridge area of Kent County, Michigan when freezing rain coated apples still hanging on the trees. The fruit eventually fell away, leaving behind these wild, hollow ice apples ❄️ Moments like this are uncommon, these photos were taken several years ago during just the right conditions 🧊🍎

I confess that even though I grew up surrounded by orchards that I have not, and it is extremely cool! Here are a couple more shots from Robinette’s Facebook post!

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Thundersnow Season

Posted on by farlane
thundersnow aftermath by Christian Collins

thundersnow aftermath by Christian Collins

A reader commented that they had seen lightning & heard the rumble of thunder yesterday, an observation shared by numerous folks around the state. Although a lot of the online articles are hyping up thunder snow as a dangerous or abnormal phenomenon, it’s not.

The NOAA National Severe Storms Laboratory’s Severe Weather 101 explains that although thunderstorms are less common in the winter, sometimes lightning does occur within a snowstorms and is called thundersnow. Thundersnow can be found where there is relatively strong instability and abundant moisture above the surface, such as above a warm front. Thundersnow is sometimes observed downstream of the Great Salt Lake and the Great Lakes during lake-effect snowstorms too.

Christian took this back in February if 2017. See more in his barns – graneros gallery on Flickr.

PS: If anyone in the Upper Peninsula captured yesterday’s thundersnow on video, the National Weather Service Marquette Office would love to see it!

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