Inland and coastal waterbodies are critical components of the global biosphere. Timely monitoring is necessary to enhance our understanding of their functions, the drivers impacting on these functions and to deliver more effective management. The ability to observe waterbodies from space has led to Earth observation (EO) becoming established as an important source of information on water quality and ecosystem condition. Howeve...

Summary Mid‐winter limnological surveys of L ake E rie captured extremes in ice extent ranging from expansive ice cover in 2010 and 2011 to nearly ice‐free waters in 2012. Consistent with a warming climate, ice cover on the G reat L akes is in decline, thus the ice‐free condition encountered may foreshadow the lakes future winter state. Here, we show that pronounced changes in annual ice cover are accompanied by equally import...