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Lake stratification is the tendency of lakes to form separate and distinct thermal layers during warm weather. Typically stratified lakes show three distinct layers: the epilimnion, comprising the top warm layer; the thermocline (or metalimnion), the middle layer, whose depth may change throughout the day; and the colder hypolimnion, extending to the floor of the lake.
A thermocline (also known as the thermal layer or the metalimnion in lakes) is a distinct layer based on temperature within a large body of fluid (e.g. water, as in an ocean or lake; or air, e.g. an atmosphere) with a high gradient of distinct temperature differences associated with depth.
Lake stratification, generally a form of thermal stratification caused by density variations due to water temperature, is the formation of separate and distinct layers of water during warm weather, and sometimes when frozen over.
The epilimnion or surface layer is the top-most layer in a thermally stratified lake. The epilimnion is the layer that is most affected by sunlight, its thermal energy heating the surface, thereby making it warmer and less dense. As a result, the epilimnion sits above the deeper metalimnion and hypolimnion, which are colder and denser.
The development of thermal stratification during winter is then defined by two periods: Winter I and Winter II. [16] During the early winter period of Winter I the major heat flux is due to heat stored in sediment; during this period the lake heats up from beneath forming a deep layer of 4 °C water. [16]
'lake'. [2] It is the layer that lies below the thermocline. Typically the hypolimnion is the coldest layer of a lake in summer, and the warmest layer during winter. [1] In deep, temperate lakes, the bottom-most waters of the hypolimnion are typically close to 4 °C throughout the year. The hypolimnion may be much warmer in lakes at warmer ...
The distinct separation of these layers of the water column are collectively referred to as the thermal and density strata. Thermal and density stratification is a critical factor influencing the composition of the water column. Composition often refers to the presence of or lack of nutrients and organisms. [5]
The deeper waters remain cool and dense due to reduced light penetration. As the summer begins, two distinct layers become established, with such a large temperature difference between them that they remain stratified. The lowest zone in the lake is the coldest and is called the hypolimnion. The upper warm zone is called the epilimnion.