Ideas, history, and engineering behind tide prediction.
Articles for developers, coastal operators, and curious readers who want practical context for tides, datums, stations, and marine data.
The Art of the Tide
Although the ocean may appear to be a still and stagnant place from land, this is far from the truth; it is constantly moving. The ebb and flow of the ocean tides are continuous. Waves...
Something in the Water
In the treacherous Seymour Narrows, near the Campbell River in British Columbia, there was an underwater mountain with a dangerous reputation for destroying vessels. Known as Ripple Rock,...
Rolling in the Deep
Tides are enormous waves that move through the ocean in response to the forces exerted by the Moon and the Sun. Tides start in the sea and move towards the coast, where they appear as the...
Don’t Make Waves
It's a well-known fact that the Great Lakes are the largest group of freshwater lakes globally, but did you know they also have the smallest tides? This is because they're not oceans but...
Rock the Boat
Cook Strait, the narrow channel between the two main islands of New Zealand, is known for its tumultuous tides. The strait was named after British explorer James Cook, who sailed through...
From Sea to Shining Sea
The United States built the Panama Canal in the early 20th century, joining the Atlantic to the Pacific by way of a 51-mile strip across the Isthmus of Panama. Ships would no longer have...
Red Red Tide
"Red tide" is a term for a harmful algal bloom, known as HAB. HAB occurs when algae colonies, simple plants that live in freshwater and seawater, get out of control, producing toxins that...
Shake, Rattle, & Roll
Is there a connection between earthquakes and tides? A correlation exists between earthquakes and tides along mid-ocean ridges that underwater mountain ranges near the edges of tectonic...
The Old Tide and the Sea
The tides in coastal cities and beaches are so regular that almanacs predict how they will behave years in advance. Thousands of years ago, those predictions would have been impossible....
It’s Got to be Tide
Did you know that the Earth would experience two equally proportionate high and low tides every lunar day if it were a perfect sphere devoid of large continents? But of course, that\'s not...
Seas the Day!
"Whatever speculation about the tide's cause or secret harmony, the earliest coastal people most certainly accumulated vast practical knowledge about daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly...
Tide and Seek
Are you aware that the sun affects Earth\'s tides? Ocean tides result from gravitational forces from the moon and sun. Gravitational pull can be calculated based on the mass divided by the...
Happiness Comes in Waves
There's no need to head to Hawaii's North Shore to catch a big wave; instead, head to Alaska! The Turnagain Arm, located south of Anchorage, Alaska, is where surfers come from around the...
Name That Tide
Low tide, high tide, spring tide, neap tide; let this article be your guide! Tides are the alternating advances and retreats of seawater along the shoreline. During high tide, the tide...
The Tide is High, and I’m Moving On
It's a beautiful day at the beach. You find the perfect spot to set up your umbrella and lay out your towel. Next, you cover yourself with sunscreen and take a nap. Moments later, you're...
The Tides They Are A-Changin’
Most people consider tides a regular and predictable phenomenon, the rise and fall of marine waters caused by the Moon and the Sun, predicted down to the minute with tide prediction...
Time and Tide Wait for No Man
The movement of ocean tides is vital to many groups of people, from fishers to surfers to coastal engineers. The behavior of tides over time provides valuable data to those studying...
The Tides of War
It sounds like the title of a movie, but Operation Neptune was the code name for D-Day, the largest seaborne invasion in history. Perhaps you've seen footage of the troops coming ashore in...
