Kelly House
Bridge Magazine
Five minutes.
That’s how much sunshine Grand Rapids experienced over the first eight days of the year, before the glowing orb finally broke through the clouds.
The city was not the exception. For almost two weeks, clouds covered large swathes Michigan. Sometimes, they were accompanied by rain that turned our winter wonderland into an unruly mess.
Cloudy days are the norm in Michigan this time of year, but the recent string “definitely is extreme, even for this time of year,” said Brandon Hoving, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Grand Rapids.
Michigan has seen worse. The bad news is that muddy winters in Michigan may become more common due to climate change. This could happen as Michigan’s Great Lakes Ice Cover melts away, increasing the forces that drive rain, snow, and lake effect clouds.
“An educated guess would be that with more open water there would be more clouds,” said State Climatologist Jeffrey Andresen.
If this bothers you, it might be time to get a light therapy lamp and Vitamin D supplements. Also, consider starting a morning exercise routine to beat winter blues.
It is a dreary winter.
Michigan has a long history of cloudy winters.
The weather and science website Current Results says that Lansing has 175 sunny or partly sunny days — a lighter way of saying it has more cloudy Days (190) are more sunny than sunny days.
Detroit is consistently ranked among the most cloudy major cities in the U.S., while Michigan counties are bright red on the federal government’s map showing the average annual hours sunlight.
Michigan’s winter is defined by gray skies. Andresen has a written response ready for any calls or emails from recent, discouraged transplants from sunnier areas.
The likelihood of cloudy days increases the farther north you travel in the Northern Hemisphere. However, Michigan winters can be extremely dreary, even when compared to other places at a similar latitude.
Blame the Great Lakes
When an icy wind sweeps over the vast lakes’ warmer open waters, it picks up moisture to form the clouds that cause Michigan’s trademark lake effect snow and rain.
“We’re downwind of Lake Michigan, so we bear the brunt of cloudiness,” Hoving said.
As winter gets colder, the Great Lakes freeze. This traps more of their surface under ice and reduces the lake effect. Richard Rood, a University of Michigan professor and an expert in weather modelling, is co-principal investigator at Great Lakes Integrated Sciences and Assessments.
The Great Lakes ice has been declining over the years. This year so far has been a dud, with ice covering just 3.4 percent of the lakes’ surface. That’s well below the average of about 20 percent for early January.
Less ice means more opportunities for moisture to evaporate into the atmosphere, he said, “which means we will see more lake effect, whether it’s snow or rain.”
Get vitamins and lights to help you get the job done
If the endless cloud cover has you feeling a little blue, you’re in good company.
As much as 20 percent of the state’s population suffers from a condition called seasonal affective disorder (SAD), which is linked to insufficient light exposure, said Hanne Hoffmann, a Michigan State University professor who studies how our brains respond to light exposure.
The symptoms of the disorder include mood swings, low energy, and an increase in sleeping and eating. This can often start in the fall, and then ease up in the spring.
“Most of us can relate to how good it feels when the sun comes out,” Hoffmann said. “There’s actually a biological reason for that.”
Our eyes capture sunlight, activating brain neurons that stimulate what Hoffmann calls the “feel-well centers” of the brain while boosting serotonin.
These effects decrease in winter because Michigan gets less daylight, more clouds, and even less sunlight on clear days. The summer sun’s intensity can be five times greater than even the sunniest winter days, Hoffmann said.
A lack of winter sunlight also cuts into our body’s ability to generate Vitamin D, which helps regulate mood and other body functions.
THoffmann suggested that you take vitamin D supplements to counter these effects and invest in a therapy lamp to combat seasonal affective disorder. Look for a lamp that doesn’t emit UV light, that emits 10,000 lux (a measure of light intensity), and is at least as big as a sheet of printer paper.
Hoffmann stated that the lights can help with SAD symptoms for 80 percent of people. They can also have unintended effects for people with diabetes or clinical depression. If you’re concerned about risks, talk to your doctor.
She said that exercise can also counter seasonal blues. The same goes for social interaction with loved ones and friends.
Lansing’s 10-day forecast iCloudy, or mostly cloudy.
If it’s any consolation, it could be worse. One winter in the late-2000s, Hoving said, the sun didn’t shine for 21 days.