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Water quality in lakes is
dependent on many different parameters, including temperature, dissolved
oxygen, transparency, total phosphorus, nitrates, hardness and
conductivity. As Rachael
mentioned earlier, lakes in Maine undergo a process of stratification and
mixing, dependent on the temperature in the water. In the winter and the summer, because of the difference
in temperature throughout the water column and the associated difference in
water density, wind is unable to cause a significant mixing of the
water. In the spring and fall,
however, the water becomes uniform in temperature and density, and therefore
any major wind event is able to mix the water throughout the column, which
causes many of the water quality parameters to become uniform through the
depths of the lake. Now I would
like to show you our findings, first for dissolved and temperature, and how
our findings reflect this stratification and mixing process. [Click to next slide]
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