Why don't any of the great lakes have tidal waves?

Question

There certainly is enough water there, not as much as an ocean, but eneough. If there was an underground earthquake in Lake Michigan could a wave gain momentum going the long way (north to south) and, like, totally surprise northern Indiana?

Answer 1

In comparison to the (global) Ocean, Lake Michigan is a drop in the bucket. So your conclusion - 'There certainly is enough water there, not as much as an ocean, but eneough' is erroneous.

If there is an Earthquake underneath it, the water will simply spill over into Michigan, Indiana, Iℓℓinois & Ontario before making its way to River St.Lawrence. Lake Huron might see a huge tidal wave while Superior might experience less so. No doubt, it 'd cause havoc wiping out entire populations of cities there (including Chicago) but in Geophysical or Geological terms it can't be compared to the Pacific Tsunamis or the 2004 boxing day Tsunami (in Indian Ocean) that devastated Sumatra, Thailand, South India & Sri Lanka.

Answer 2

They could, but the fact is that there are basically no volcanoes or earthquakes in that area. It's very geologically stable.

Answer 3

They do, but very small ones.

They're a relatively small closed system compared to the oceans,

so the water just 'sloshes back & forth' a very small amount.

Answer 4

there are no significant earthquakes in that area. earthquakes there are extremely rare and very small and weak.