The Great Lakes represent roughly 20% of the surface freshwater in the world and 90% in the United States. The Great Lakes Basin supports more than 30 million people in the U.S. and Canada and 3,500 plant and animal species. The region faces threats that range from climate change and invasive species to pollution and development.
Michigan and Landsat
See Michigan from Space
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Detailed Description
Water means a lot to Michigan, often called the Great Lakes State. The name “Michigan” comes from an Ojibwe word meaning large, or great, water or lake. As the only State touching four of the five Great Lakes—Michigan, Superior, Huron, and Erie—it claims the longest freshwater coastline in the United States.
Yet Michigan is not just about water—forests, agriculture, mines, cities, and even sand dunes stretch across the State’s landscape. Much of what happens on the land does connect in some way with Michigan’s inland and coastal waters. Michigan relies on a healthy environment to support its residents, abundant tourists, and diverse species of wildlife that call the State and its surrounding waters home. From hundreds of miles above, Landsat satellites provide a clearer picture of the connections among land, water, and the people and wildlife that inhabit the State.
Visit Landsat Benefits, State By State to learn more about how Landsat brings science to your state.
Sources/Usage
Public Domain.