By AP
MINNEAPOLIS –
Swimmers are finding the waters of the Great Lakes milder than usual this year, and scientists worry that may not be a good thing.
All five Great Lakes have been at or near record-high temperatures for the 30 years such measurements have been taken. And there's still a month left before the lakes typically hit their warmest levels of the summer.
Jay Austin, a physics professor at the Large Lakes Observatory in Duluth, Minn., says the water is warmer because there was little or no ice cover last winter to reflect sunlight. Scientists don't know if it's a blip or the new normal.
A more swimmable Lake Superior might be good for tourism, but it might be bad for fishing, wildlife habitat and water levels.