NASA’s DC-8 awaits takeoff from Cold Lake, Alberta, amid cloudy skies. Researchers hoped to locate pyrocumulus clouds, smoke plumes that take the shape of thunderstorms. Credit: NASA

Cold Lake was first recorded on a 1790 map, by the name of Coldwater Lake. Originally three communities, Cold Lake was formed by merging the Town of Grand Centre, the Town of Cold Lake, and Medley (Canadian Forces Base 4 Wing) on October 1, 1996. Grand Centre was renamed Cold Lake South, and the original Cold Lake is known as Cold Lake North. Because of its origins, the area is also known as the Tri-Town.