After a well below average amount of ice last season (2023-24), this year Lake Erie’s surface is icy.
CLEVELAND — It’s been a real winter here in Northeast Ohio, hasn’t it? Cold air. Proper bouts of snow. And Lake Erie is mostly iced over.
As of Feb. 18, 2025 Lake Erie is 94.78% iced over (scroll down to see a satellite picture of the Lake). This is stark change to ice coverage at this time last season when the Lake had a maximum of 35.7% ice coverage.
As a matter of fact, this is the most ice coverage the Lake has had since 2018 when 95.1% of the Lake was iced over.
It’s a rarity that Lake Erie totally ices over. Wind is a major fact, as it keeps the ice moving and “chopped up” so to speak.
At the same time, we’ve never had a season with zero ice.
Here is the historical record of ice cover on Lake Erie, courtesy of NOAA’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab (GLERL):
1973 Â 95.7
1974 Â 88.5
1975 Â 80.1
1976 Â 95.4
1977 Â 99.8
1978 Â 100.0
1979 Â 100.0
1980 Â 93.4
1981 Â 96.0
1982 Â 99.1
1983 Â 40.8
1984 Â 95.7
1985 Â 96.0
1986 Â 95.5
1987 Â 88.0
1988 Â 91.5
1989 Â 91.6
1990 Â 72.8
1991 Â 35.1
1992 Â 89.8
1993 Â 94.3
1994 Â 96.7
1995 Â 94.0
1996 Â 100.0
1997 Â 99.6
1998 Â Â 5.4
1999 Â 74.8
2000 Â 90.7
2001 Â 94.0
2002 Â 14.4
2003 Â 95.7
2004 Â 95.4
2005 Â 93.0
2006 Â 21.9
2007 Â 95.8
2008 Â 93.4
2009 Â 95.5
2010 Â 93.1
2011 Â 95.8
2012 Â 13.9
2013 Â 83.7
2014 Â 96.1
2015 Â 98.1
2016 Â 78.7
2017 Â 35.5
2018 Â 95.1
2019 Â 94.3
2020 Â 15.9
2021 Â 85.7
2022 Â 93.8
2023 Â 40.2
2024 Â 35.7
Ice cover on Lake Erie is kind of a big deal. It plays a key role in keeping the lake’s ecosystem in balance. It affects everything from water temperature and fish populations to regional weather. According to research from the NOAA and studies in the Journal of Great Lakes Research, ice acts like a natural blanket, helping to reduce evaporation and maintain water levels — both essential for aquatic life and human use.
Scientists at the GLERL also point out that ice cover helps regulate water temperatures, preventing drastic swings that could disrupt fish spawning, especially for species like or coveted walleye and yellow perch. Plus, it helps protect the shoreline by buffering waves, reducing erosion — a benefit documented by the International Association for Great Lakes Research (IAGLR).
Climate impacts could mean ice cover is shrinking, and that has consequences. A study in Nature Climate Change warns that less ice could mean stronger lake-effect snowstorms in nearby regions. With ice cover declining, scientists stress the need to keep a close eye on these changes to better protect Lake Erie’s ecosystem and the communities that depend on it.
