Giant waves "walloped" a lighthouse in Saint Joseph on Tuesday (November 28) as impressive icicles began to form along the edge of a shaky pier. According to The Weather Channel, huge waves and frigid temperatures were brought on by lake-effect snow, a common weather phenomenon experienced within the Great Lakes region.
This weather pattern typically occurs in the late fall and early winter months, dumping snow across the Great Lakes. The National Weather Service detailed the scientific process behind "lake-effect snow, stating that its origins come from cold Canadian air that moves across the lake water.
"As the cold air passes over the unfrozen and relatively warm waters of the Great Lakes, warmth and moisture are transferred into the lowest portion of the atmosphere. The air rises, clouds form and grow into narrow band that produces 2 to 3 inches of snow per hour or more."
Satellite images shared by The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) show what the lake-effect looks like in real- time. What appears to be massive, white, whimsical mountains over Canada and the Great Lakes Region is actually heaps of snow being blown around by the wind based on the "physical geography of the land."
Last weekend, Michigan's Upper Peninsula was under a Winter Weather Warning as lake-effect snow blew across the region. Per MLive, the snow even fell across Southern portions of the state through Sunday (November 26) and began to melt by Monday morning (November 27).