tide, any of the cyclic deformations of one astronomical body caused by the gravitational forces exerted by others. The most familiar are the periodic variations in sea level on Earth that correspond to changes in the relative positions of the Moon and the Sun. The tides may be regarded as forced waves, partially running waves and partially standing waves. They are manifested by vertical movements of the sea surface (the height maximum and minimum are called high water [HW] and low water [LW]) and alternating horizontal movements of the water, the tidal currents. The words ebb and flow are used to designate the falling tide and the rising tide, respectively.

Ocean tides

At the surface of Earth, the gravitational force of the Moon is about 2.2 times greater than that of the Sun. The tide-producing action of the Moon arises from the variations in its gravitational field over the surface of Earth as compared with its strength at Earth’s centre. The effect is that the water tends to accumulate on the parts of Earth’s surface directly toward and directly opposite the Moon and to be depleted elsewhere. The regions of accumulation move over the surface as the position of the Moon varies relative to Earth, mainly because of Earth’s rotation but also because of the Moon’s orbital motion around Earth. There are approximately two high and two low tides per day at any given place, but they occur at times that change from day to day; the average interval between consecutive high tides is 12 hours 25 minutes. The effect of the Sun is similar and additive to that of the Moon. Consequently, the tides of largest range or amplitude (spring tides) occur at new moon, when the Moon and the Sun are in the same direction, and at full moon, when they are in opposite directions; the tides of smallest range (neap tides) occur at intermediate phases of the Moon.

Although the observed tides possess the aforementioned broad features, this pattern does not correspond to a pair of bulges that move around Earth. The inertia of the water, the existence of continents, and effects associated with the water depth result in much more complicated behaviour. For the main oceans, a combination of theory and observation indicates the existence of amphidromic points, at which the tidal rise and fall is zero; patterns of high and low tides rotate around these points (either clockwise or counterclockwise). Amplitudes are typically less than a metre.

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Earth sciences: Knowledge of the tides

In some semi-enclosed seas, such as the Mediterranean, Black, and Baltic seas, a standing wave, or tidal seiche, may be generated by the local tide-raising forces. In these seas the tidal range of sea level is only on the order of centimetres.

Tides are most easily observed—and of greatest practical importance—along seacoasts, where the amplitudes are exaggerated. When tidal motions run into the shallow waters of the continental shelf, their rate of advance is reduced, energy accumulates in a smaller volume, and the rise and fall is amplified. The details of tidal motions in coastal waters, particularly in channels, gulfs, and estuaries, depend on the details of coastal geometry and water depth variation. Tidal amplitudes, the contrast between spring and neap tides, and the variation of times of high and low tide all vary widely from place to place. The largest known tides occur in the Bay of Fundy, where spring tidal ranges up to 15 metres (about 50 feet) have been measured.

For the reasons cited above, purely theoretical calculation of the times and heights of tides at a particular station is quite impossible. Nevertheless, tides are successfully predicted on the basis of accumulated observations of the tides at the place concerned. The analysis of the observations relies on the fact that any tidal pattern (in time) is a superposition of variations associated with periodicities in the motions of the Moon and the Sun relative to Earth. The periods involved are the same everywhere, ranging from about 12 hours to a year or more, but the relative sizes of their contributions are highly variable. Observations over a sufficient time make it possible to calculate which contributions are significant at a particular location and, thus, to forecast tidal times and heights. It is common that 40 components may be significant for practical calculations at one location.

Atmospheric and other tides

In addition to tides in the oceans (and in large lakes, where similar processes occur with smaller amplitudes), there are analogous gravitational effects on the atmosphere and in Earth’s interior. Atmospheric tides are detectable meteorological phenomena but are a comparatively minor component in atmospheric motions. An Earth tide differs from oceanic and atmospheric ones in that the response to it is an elastic deformation rather than a flow. Observations of Earth tides contribute to knowledge of Earth’s internal structure.

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Tidal processes can, of course, also occur on other members of the solar system. As just one example, it has been suggested that the volcanic activity of Jupiter’s satellite Io is the consequence of internal heating by frictional resistance to tidal deformation.