When more than 5,000 athletes arrived in Milwaukee for the 2026 USA Triathlon, they had access to something competitors at most races do not: real-time information about the temperature of the water they were about to enter.
That information was made possible in part by Todd Miller, Associate Professor of Environmental Health Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Joseph J. Zilber College of Public Health, whose research and student-built monitoring technology helped USA Triathlon track conditions in Lake Michigan ahead of the competition.
WUWM environmental reporter Susan Bence recently highlighted Miller’s work in the story, “Milwaukee scientist teams up with USA Triathlon to monitor lake temperature.”
From water-quality research to athlete safety
Much of Miller’s research focuses on blue-green algae that can produce toxins harmful to people, animals and aquatic ecosystems. Monitoring lakes is an important part of that work.
Beginning in 2010, Miller and his students developed small, solar-powered monitoring devices he calls “Panther buoys,” named for UWM’s mascot. The buoys were initially designed to collect information about harmful algal blooms in Wisconsin lakes and have since been deployed at locations ranging from inland lakes to the Apostle Islands.
That technology eventually found another application: helping triathletes prepare to swim in Lake Michigan.
Miller first assisted USA Triathlon with water-temperature monitoring when the event came to Milwaukee in 2013. At the time, he and his team periodically measured water temperature leading up to the race. When USA Triathlon returned the following year, Miller proposed using one of the team’s buoys to continuously collect temperature readings instead.
The idea proved useful enough that Miller once again deployed the buoy in the Discovery World lagoon in preparation for the 2026 event.
Real-time data from Lake Michigan
The 25-pound buoy measures water temperature at four depths, from the surface down to approximately 10 feet. Solar panels provide continuous power, allowing the system to collect temperature data every few minutes.
Athletes can access that information through a link provided by USA Triathlon, giving competitors an opportunity to see changing water conditions before race day.
That can be particularly valuable for athletes who have never swum in a Great Lake. Lake Michigan temperatures can change quickly when colder, deeper water moves toward the surface, Miller explained to WUWM.
Water temperature also directly affects race rules. USA Triathlon Event Director Brian D’Amico told WUWM that wetsuits are mandatory at temperatures of 60.6 degrees Fahrenheit or below and prohibited when the water reaches 76.8 degrees or higher. Between those temperatures, athletes may have more flexibility.
D’Amico described Miller’s monitoring system as unusual among triathlon events and said the temperature information it provides is extremely valuable to organizers and competitors.
Putting environmental health research to work
For Miller, the project demonstrates how environmental health research and technology developed at UW-Milwaukee can have immediate, practical applications in the community.
His broader work at UWM examines harmful algal blooms, water quality and contaminants that can affect human health. As principal investigator of the Laboratory for Aquatic Microbiology and Chemistry, Miller studies environmental threats in Wisconsin waterways and throughout the Great Lakes region.
The USA Triathlon partnership puts that expertise to work in a highly visible Milwaukee event, while demonstrating another way that environmental monitoring can help people safely interact with one of the region’s most important natural resources.
Read and listen to the full WUWM story, “Milwaukee scientist teams up with USA Triathlon to monitor lake temperature.”