Are you as strong as the lake? Test your wave strength and study the science of wave action in this exhibit, which encourages visitors of all ages to explore the power, movement and flow of the water in the Great Lakes.

A favorite of our youngest visitors, the Great Lakes Water Table is a fully functioning model of the Great Lakes. You can sail a boat through the Great Lakes, raising and lowering the boats in the locks as you go along, make it rain in the Nipigon watershed area, take a detour to the hydroelectric dam to create electricity, or check out the wastewater treatment plant and take the pollution test.

On average, a molecule of water spends approximately 191 years in Lake Superior.


Lake Superior does not have tides but does move from side to side in a movement called a seiche. A seiche can raise or lower the water level significantly. The sloshing of water in the lake as a whole is caused by wind and weather patterns.