Lake Superior

14 Stories

Lake Superior Ship That Sank With Captain Found

The Arlington went down in a storm in 1940

(Newser) - Shipwreck hunters have discovered a merchant ship that sank in Lake Superior in 1940, taking its captain with it, during a storm off Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society and shipwreck researcher Dan Fountain announced Monday the discovery of the 244-foot bulk carrier Arlington in about...

The Coronavirus Turns Up in Lake Water
Weird Coronavirus Find
Turns Up in Lake Water
new research
Sep 30, 2020 5:30 PM CDT

Weird Coronavirus Find Turns Up in Lake Water

A University of Minnesota professor calls it 'very interesting'

(Newser) - A Minnesota professor has discovered the coronavirus in lake water—apparently the first such such find during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Pioneer Press reports. Richard Melvin of the University of Minnesota Medical School says he stumbled on SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, in samples culled from eight beaches along Lake Superior...

Selfie-Taking Woman Plunges to Her Death in Lake Superior

Tu Thanh Nguyen was hiking alone when she apparently stopped to take a cliff pic

(Newser) - What should have been a day of hiking with awe-inspiring views turned tragic in Michigan Wednesday when a woman fell to her death into Lake Superior. WLUC reports 32-year-old Tu Thanh Nguyen, from Sunnyvale, Calif., was traversing the trails along the cliffs of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore by herself when...

Mom Only Survivor in Family Kayaking Trip Gone Wrong

Cari Mews loses husband, 3 children in Lake Superior tragedy

(Newser) - It was a small flash of light, likely from her cellphone, that helped rescuers locate Cari Mews in Lake Superior Thursday night, suffering from hypothermia six hours after her kayak had capsized. But while the 29-year-old Wisconsin mom was lucky to be found in time, the other members of her...

Newly Found Shipwreck's Story an Extra Tragic One
Newly Found Shipwreck's Story an Extra-Tragic One
in case you missed it
Sep 14, 2014 6:42 AM CDT

Newly Found Shipwreck's Story an Extra-Tragic One

In 1899, captain saw Lake Superior claim crew and family

(Newser) - Shipwrecks are tragic things by nature, but the story behind the Nelson, an 1899 wreck discovered Aug. 26 in Lake Superior, is as sad as they come: When the ship foundered in a sudden gale, the captain stayed aboard to lower the lifeboat, then jumped overboard—only to watch as...

Great Lakes Days Away From Record Ice Cover

Long cold spell excellent for lakes' health

(Newser) - This long, cold winter has created the most ice cover on the Great Lakes in 20 years —and with ice cover usually at its peak in mid-March, there's still time for records to be broken. Lake Superior is now more than 90% covered by ice, reports NBC , and...

Great Lakes Almost Completely Iced Over

They haven't frozen over this much since 1994

(Newser) - It's been so cold for such a long time in the Great Lakes region that the lakes are now almost completely covered with ice for the first time in 20 years. Ice cover has now reached 88% across the five lakes, the most since 1994, when 94% of their...

Lake Superior Ice Caves Open for First Time Since '09

More than 1K visit each day

(Newser) - About 1,000 people a day are braving the cold—and not-completely-immobile ice—to see a rare and spectacular sight: the Apostle Island Ice Caves on Lake Superior. For the first time in five years, it's possible to walk across the ice to the caves, reports Wisconsin Public Radio...

Famed 1913 Shipwreck Unearthed in Lake Superior
Famed 1913 Shipwreck Unearthed in Lake Superior
in case you missed it
Jun 15, 2013 1:00 PM CDT

Famed 1913 Shipwreck Unearthed in Lake Superior

Henry B. Smith went down almost exactly a century ago

(Newser) - Jerry Eliason describes it as "the most satisfying find of my shipwreck-hunting career"—but the sunken ship he speaks of slumbers not in the depths of the Atlantic or Pacific, but off the shores of Marquette, Michigan. The Duluth News Tribune reports on the fascinating coda to the...

Erie, Ontario Fare Worst in Study of Great Lakes

Lake Superior relatively clean in comparison

(Newser) - A three-year environmental study has produced a color-coded map of the Great Lakes, with Ontario and Erie clearly under the most stress from a hodgepodge of factors, reports the Detroit Free Press . (See the map here .) One big culprit with those two lakes, however, is fertilizer runoff from farms,...

Zoo Animals Die in Devastating Minn. Flood

Seal, polar bear swim to safety after torrential rains

(Newser) - A polar bear and a seal who managed to swim to freedom and safety were among the lucky ones when torrential rains inundated a Minnesota town, flooding homes and streets, forcing evacuations and wiping out the local zoo. An 8-year-old boy was swept six blocks in an underground culvert in...

Thou Shalt Not Covet Thy Neighbor's Water

Sunbelt lusts for Great Lakes' water, but eight states vow to keep it

(Newser) - You'd think the warm weather and easy living would make the West and South leave Frostbelters alone. But no, they want what that frost is made from: water. As drought and development strain limited local water resources, the Sunbelt wants to tap some of the billions of gallons of Great...

Great Lake Getting Less Superior
Great Lake Getting Less Superior
Aug 15, 2007 4:45 PM CDT

Great Lake Getting Less Superior

(Newser) - Water levels in Lake Superior are down a whole foot this year, and scientists say man is to blame. The world's largest body of fresh water by surface area has suffered an on-and-off drought for four years, but levels may reach an all-time low this summer. Climate change is partially...

Polluted Fish Swamp Great Lakes
Polluted
Fish Swamp Great Lakes
Jul 6, 2007 4:23 PM CDT

Polluted Fish Swamp Great Lakes

Industrial chemicals raise contaminant levels into range unsafe for eating

(Newser) - Industrial chemicals contaminate many species of fish that populate the Great Lakes, making them too hazardous for safe human consumption, says a Canadian conservation group. "The lakes continue to be polluted to such an extent that human health is threatened," says a report released yesterday that lists industrial...

14 Stories