Why Lake Michigan never completely freezes over episode artwork

EPISODE · Feb 27, 2026 · 11 MIN

Why Lake Michigan never completely freezes over

from Lake Effect Spotlight · host WUWM 89.7 FM - Milwaukee's NPR

The cold has returned to Milwaukee and the water is slowly icing over once again. But if you stare out at Lake Michigan, you’ll see flowing water in the not-so-distant horizon. And there’s a good reason for that, as artist and educator Geo Rutherford can tell you.  Rutherford is an educator and content creator based here in Wisconsin, whose work focuses on bodies of water. Her TikTok, geodesaurus, shares videos filled with facts about our waterways, including Lake Michigan. She joins Lake Effect’s Joy Powers to explain what makes Lake Michigan so unique. 

The cold has returned to Milwaukee and the water is slowly icing over once again. But if you stare out at Lake Michigan, you’ll see flowing water in the not-so-distant horizon. And there’s a good reason for that, as artist and educator Geo Rutherford can tell you.   Rutherford is an educator and content creator based here in Wisconsin, whose work focuses on bodies of water. Her TikTok, geodesaurus, shares videos filled with facts about our waterways, including Lake Michigan. She joins Lake Effect’s Joy Powers to explain what makes Lake Michigan so unique.

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Why Lake Michigan never completely freezes over

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This episode is 11 minutes long.

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This episode was published on February 27, 2026.

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The cold has returned to Milwaukee and the water is slowly icing over once again. But if you stare out at Lake Michigan, you’ll see flowing water in the not-so-distant horizon. And there’s a good reason for that, as artist and educator Geo...

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