During lunch the view at the Chicago Yacht Club's Belmont station turned gray. The fog returned after the storm passed. In the period of about 10 minutes visibility dropped to a few hundred yards. The fuel dock (perhaps 200 yards away) was completely obscured!
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Low water after the May 29 storm. High water was over the bottom of the lowest wall board, just 15 minutes before this was taken . |
I don't know if this was technically a seiche or just a change in water level due to pressure change, but it was neat to watch. I also noticed current around some of the boats. Its not uncommon to see a swirling current at the harbor entrance. I imagine it was pretty strong today.
I found two interesting articles explaining seiches. The first, Seiches: Sudden, Large Waves a Lake Michigan Danger is from Illinois State Geological Survey. The second is Sloshing the Lakes: The Seiche.
Finally, the low clouds had an interesting texture and the wind shift to southerly winds brought noticeably warmer air.
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Looking south after Sunday's storms. Fractocumulus clouds? |