James Watrous Gallery | Science on Ice: Why Winter is the New Frontier for Freshwater Sciences

Here in Wisconsin, like most northern latitudes, the vast majority of freshwater research occurs during the warmer months of “open water” season.  But most lakes in Wisconsin are frozen for three to five months a year and there is a lot scientists don’t know about what’s going on under their icy surfaces. In just the past few years, researchers at the UW-Madison’s Center for Limnology have launched an ambitious winter limnology effort to fill in gaps in scientific knowledge of Wisconsin’s incomparable freshwaters and better understand what a warming climate means for our lakes. Center for Limnology researcher Hilary Dugan will share the latest research on everything from winter algae blooms to the impacts of road salt and how what winter limnologists learn can help protect our waters.

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