The polar vortex brought life-threatening frigid temperatures, snow and intense winds, paralyzing cities across the Midwest. But there is one part of the vortex residents aren't complaining about: the view. While temperatures dipped lower than Alaska and Antarctica in some areas this week, several bodies of water started to freeze and "smoke." On Wednesday, Chicagoans posted photos of the Chicago River's swirling sea smoke as O'Hare hit a record-low temperature of minus 22. "[Sea] 'smoke' actually is water vapor that forms when really cold air moves over relatively warmer water and the thin boundary layer of warm air just above the surface," Sea Grant at the University of Maine previously explained in a paper. "When the evaporating water rises, the cold air can only hold so much moisture, forcing the liquid to condense into fog." CAN BIRDS SURVIVE A POLAR VORTEX? HERE'S WHAT HAPPENS TO FEATHERED CREATURES IN FREEZING TEMPERATURES WGN-TV Chicago's chief meteorologist Tom Skilling said Lake Michigan, in particular, was quite a spectacle. “Lake Michigan took on the appearance of a boiling cauldron as air of minus-20 degrees and colder made contact with water sitting just above the freezing level,” Skilling described in a report Wednesday. “I’ve lived here 40 years and never until today have never seen a more spectacular display of ‘sea smoke.’" However, in a previous report, Skilling revealed Lake Michigan has never actually completely frozen over, though it has gotten close. "It has not [frozen over], but it's possible in a winter when severe cold envelops the north and central Midwest. Wave action and wind, combined with the vast reservoir of heat contained in the lake, have so far prevented complete freezing," Skilling told a viewer in 2017, noting the lake reached nearly 95 percent ice coverage in the winters of 1903-04, 1976-77, 1978-79. By Thursday, Lake Michigan was essentially a winter wonderland — as several residents pointed out. "Welcome to Chiberia," a Chicago resident named Maria wrote on Instagram, revealing a "frozen" view of Lake Michigan from North Avenue Beach. A New York City-based public relations professional shared an aerial view of the Windy City as she flew over Chicago on Wednesday. VIRAL PHOTO OF CHICAGO INMATES SHOVELING IN FREEZING WEATHER SPARKS OUTRAGE AS JAIL OFFERS EXPLANATION "Work takes me to beautiful tropical places," she joked online. "But sometimes work brings me from cold to COLD ... a negative 11 degrees while landing over a very frozen Lake Michigan." She was fortunate to be able to successfully catch a flight. Airlines across the U.S. canceled more than 2,000 flights Wednesday as “historic low” temperatures hit the Midwest, FlightAware reported, prompting travelers to frequently check for delays and cancellations this week as the storm continues. Photographer Alex Enriquez captured a stunning image of the ice-covered lake from North Avenue Beach days before the polar vortex officially arrived. His Instagram post received nearly 600 likes as of Thursday afternoon. Fellow photographer Kevin Foley snapped a chilly sunset picture on Jan. 27. Days later, he shared an updated photo — this time, of the Chicago River. In the picture, sea smoke can be seen rising far into the air. The deep freeze isn't expected to last too much longer. So, soak in the incredible views while you can. By next week, Weather Underground predicts some states, like Illinois and Michigan, will see 50-degree weather.<doc-sep>You know what Michigan looks like. You probably also know what Michigan looks like on lake effect. Now take a look at Michigan on polar vortex. The National Weather Service station in Grand Rapids shared a stunning satellite image of the state of Michigan with the caption: "It sure looks like winter in Lower Michigan from space this afternoon from the latest satellite imagery from the MODIS sensors. Check out the continued lake effect clouds streaming off the Great Lakes, and ice build-up on Lake Michigan!" It looks a lot like lake effect images you've seen before, but check it out for yourself. Even through we're having a heck of a time trying to stay warm, the Great Lakes State remains quite beautiful. More polar vortex 2019 coverage Michigan has frozen and the photos are stunning Consumers asks customers to keep heat lower until Friday Gov. Whitmer seeks review of state's energy supply<doc-sep>Polar vortex 2019 remains in progress for Michigan and the Midwest. While most of us are doing what we can to stay warm and safe during this difficult stretch of cold, other folks are taking in the natural winter beauty of Michigan and sharing it with the world. More: Detroit's temperature breaks 99-year cold record More: Satellite image shows polar vortex over Michigan Here are some of the best photos we found across Instagram this morning. We're sure there are more to come as the polar vortex progresses. (Have an Instagram photo you'd like to share with us? Tag @detroitfreepress in your post and we'll see it!) Be sure you follow the Detroit Free Press on Twitter (@freep) and Instagram (@detroitfreepress) and like us on Facebook.<doc-sep>Cities in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Illinois continue to see subzero temperatures thanks to the recent polar-vortex event. Officials have warned people to avoid going outside because frostbite and hypothermia could set in within minutes. Some temperatures have gotten as low as minus 66 degrees Fahrenheit with windchill — that's colder than Antarctica is right now, according to the Weather Channel. Here's what the areas hit hardest by the polar-vortex event look like right now. As the polar vortex continues, many social-media users in the Midwest have added Antarctica to their weather apps, just so they can share images like this: Midwestern cities are currently boasting temperatures colder than the Antarctic. The Weather Channel It's proof that the temperatures they're experiencing are colder than those on the planet's southernmost continent. (It's summer at the South Pole, though — average wintertime temperatures in Antarctica are closer to minus 50 degrees Fahrenheit.) But perhaps more startling than the numbers are the images emerging from the cities and states experiencing this intense cold. Lake Michigan looks like something out of the movie "The Day After Tomorrow." In Chicago, workers lit kerosene-soaked ropes on fire next to frozen train tracks in order to keep trains running. Here's what the reality of the polar-vortex event looks like on the ground.<doc-sep>
As the Great Lakes region shivers through the polar vortex, Michigan is having a heat wave compared with its neighbors. The high temperature in Minneapolis on Wednesday was minus 14 degrees; in Chicago, minus 12; in Madison, Wisconsin, minus 10. Low temperatures of minus 28 were expected in the Twin Cities. Meanwhile, Michigan is getting off easy. Grand Rapids saw a high of 2 Wednesday. The overnight low was forecast at 1 degree. In Detroit, Wednesday’s high was minus 3, with the low forecast at minus 14. Why is it so much more chilly to our west? Lake Michigan is easing our pain, said Brent Lofgren, a physical scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory in Ann Arbor. A polar vortex involves a low-pressure area in the atmosphere, typically parked at the North Pole, that is now dipping down well into the U.S. The high-pressure area of the atmosphere behind it is forcing that frigid air into the low-pressure area — and for our region, that means it’s moving over Lake Michigan. “Air near the surface warms up by contact with the lakes,” Lofgren said. “The air will generally spread out along the surface, rather than rising back into the air column.” What's closed, canceled Thursday due to cold Don't start your car too often in cold weather With most of Lake Michigan not yet ice-covered, the cold air also picks up water vapor, which causes a bit of a greenhouse effect as well, further trapping heat — a relative term in this case. “That’s why Grand Rapids is doing better temperature-wise than other places — it’s more immediately downstream of Lake Michigan,” Lofgren said. So remember, it could be worse. Feel better? Contact Keith Matheny: 313-222-5021 or kmatheny@freepress.com. Follow on Twitter @keithmatheny.