While both the Moon and the Sun influence the ocean tides, the Moon plays the biggest role. Although the Sun’s gravitational pull on the Earth is 178 times stronger than the Moon’s, the tidal bulges it causes are much smaller. This variation creates the differential forces or tidal forces that in turn cause tides.

The tides are the result of the moon exerting its gravitational force on the ocean and bulging it both toward and away from the moon. The tide is higher, the ocean is higher, at the location closest to the moon and on the opposite side of the Earth.

Based on its mass, the sun’s gravitational attraction to the Earth is more than 177 times greater than that of the moon to the Earth. Therefore, the sun’s tide-generating force is about half that of the moon, and the moon is the dominant force affecting the Earth’s tides.

During low high tides, the Earth itself is pulled slightly toward the moon, creating high tides on the opposite side of the planet. Earth’s rotation and the gravitational pull of the sun and moon create tides on our planet. Tides move around Earth as bulges in the ocean.

Depth change This means that at high tide, when the water covers the steep beach, you are quickly out of your depth. For experienced swimmers this isn’t a problem, but for those less confident or people with young kids, it is safer to swim at low tide when the water stays shallower.

Daytime

It isn’t safe to swim in the ocean at night. Swimming in the ocean at night can pose a greater risk than swimming during daylight hours, especially for inexperienced swimmers. This is due to the loss of vision in the darkness, the lack of people nearby, and the nocturnal behavior of ocean predators.

A neap tide—seven days after a spring tide—refers to a period of moderate tides when the sun and moon are at right angles to each other. A spring tide is a common historical term that has nothing to do with the season of spring.

King tides occur when the orbits and alignment of the Earth, moon, and sun combine to produce the greatest tidal effects of the year. WHAT DO KING TIDES SHOW? King tides bring unusually high water levels, and they can cause local tidal flooding. Over time, sea level rise is raising the height of tidal systems.