Lake Michigan-Huron

Lake Michigan-Huron is a designation given to the body of water (part of the North American Great Lakes) traditionally considered to be two separate lakes: Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. Hydrologically, however, they are a single body of water: They lie at the same surface elevation, convert|577|ft|m|0, and the flow between them through the Straits of Mackinac—which are convert|5|mi|km wide and convert|120|ft|m deepFact|date=January 2008—sometimes reverses from eastward to westward. [The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration states, "Lakes Michigan and Huron are considered to be one lake hydraulically because of their connection through the deep Straits of Mackinac." [http://www.glerl.noaa.gov/res/Programs/glscf/hydrology.html] , and the United States Army Corps of Engineers says "Lakes Michigan and Huron are considered to be one lake, as they rise and fall together due to their union at the Straits of Mackinac." [http://www.edisonsault.com/CustServ/USACOE%20LS%20WATER%208%2007.pdf] ] If designated as a single entity, convert|45410|sqmi|km2|adj=on Lake Michigan-Huron would be the largest of the Great Lakes, and indeed the largest lake in the world, in terms of surface area (though smaller than the Caspian Sea). Lake Superior still surpasses Michigan-Huron in terms of overall water volume, containing convert|3000|cumi|km3|-2| of water compared with Michigan-Huron's convert|2000|cumi|km3, which makes Lake Michigan-Huron the fourth largest freshwater lake by volume in the world (the first and second being Lake Baikal and Lake Tanganyika).

There were earlier variations of the lake during the last ice age:

* Lake Chicago - southern tip of the current Lake Michigan
* Lake Stanley - northern tip of the current Lake Michigan during the glacial retreat

References

ee also

* List of lakes by area
* List of lakes by volume

External links

* [http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0001804.html Michigan and Huron: One Lake or Two?]
* [http://www.fof-clarington.com/lakehist.html Lake Iroquois]