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Ashlee Baracy: How our Great Lakes stopped Thursday’s temps from rising as expected

Expected warm front was a bust for SE Michigan

Temps in the Midwest at about 6 p.m. on April 20, 2023 (WDIV)

4Warn Weather – I’m sure many of you are wondering: ‘What the heck happened with Thursday’s temperatures?”

As you probably know, we initially forecast that high temps would rise near 80 degrees for many across Metro Detroit, thanks to a warm front that was supposed to pass through.

But those summer-like conditions never arrived. Some areas barely reached 70 degrees, while others struggled to make it past 60 degrees on Thursday, April 20. The warmest temperatures were seen in the most southwest portion of our area, where low 70s were recorded.

Rest assured, it wasn’t just a mix-up in our department -- there’s science that can back up why that warmth never reached us.

As a warm front lifted north on Thursday, it didn’t go as far north as expected. That’s because it reached a blockade in Southeast Michigan, produced by none other than our cold Great Lakes.

This type of situation typically happens in the early spring months, when water temperatures are still very cold, and warmer air is trying to push in. Colder air is denser, and the lake breeze can serve as a brick wall of sorts.

So, when the warm front hits that wall of cold air, it doesn’t have anywhere to go. Instead, it just stalls out where it’s at -- and, unfortunately for us, that means it didn’t rise north into Southeast Michigan to give us warm, near-record temps.

Just south of the state line, though, temps did reach the 80s as the warm front moved through. Lucky them!


About the Author
Ashlee Baracy headshot

Ashlee Baracy is an Emmy award-winning meteorologist who was born and raised in Metro Detroit. You can catch her 4Warn Weather forecasts weekday mornings, at noon and streaming on Local4+.

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