What is the Difference Between High Tide and Low Tide

The main difference between high tide and low tide is that high tide refers to the regular rise of the ocean waters while low tide refers to the regular fall of the ocean waters. Simply put, when the seawater covers a larger area of the shore after rising to its highest level, we call it high tide. In contrast, a low tide occurs when the seawater draws back to its lowest level, moving away from the seashore.

High tide and low tide are both natural phenomena that occur as a result of the gravitational pull of the moon, which creates the tidal force. The tidal force causes the Earth and its waters to distend on the side in closest proximity to the moon.

Key Areas Covered

1. What is High Tide 
     – Definition, Features, Cause
2. What is Low Tide
     – Definition, Features, Cause
3. Similarities – High Tide and Low Tide
     – Outline of Common Features
4. Difference Between High Tide and Low Tide
     – Comparison of Key Differences

Key Terms

High Tide, Low Tide, Tidal Force, Tides

What is High Tide

A high tide is a natural phenomenon where the moon’s gravitational pull makes the ocean waves rise up to the maximum level. High tide will go lower again when that particular water surface gets farther from the moon.

Naturally, our planet Earth and the moon rotate around each other while pulling each other towards themselves. The moon, with its gravity, attracts every bit of matter on Earth. Moon’s gravitational force affects the area of Earth closer to the moon more powerfully. Consequently,  the ocean water on the moon’s side gets attracted more strongly than the average ocean level, leading the waters to bulge towards the moon. This is how high tide occurs.

What is Low Tide

A low tide is a phenomenon where the ocean is at its’ lowest level around the coastal areas because the tide is out.  Similar to the high tide phenomenon, the gravitational pull of the moon is the reason for this low tide phenomenon.

In simple words, we can say that low tide would occur perpendicular to the tidal force. When the average gravitational pull of the moon over the Earth is removed from the moon’s gravitational pull at each specific location of Earth, we get the tidal force. In the areas where that tidal force is in the direction of Earth’s core (tidal force is pointing to the Earth), low tides occur.

Similarities Between High Tide and Low Tide

• High tide and low tide are reliable natural phenomena in the world.
• They occur as a result of the gravitational pull of the moon and the sun.
• Both high tide and low tide usually occur twice a day.

Difference Between High Tide and Low Tide

Definition

High tide is the regular rise of the ocean waves, while the low tide is the regular fall of the ocean’s waves.

 Water Level

When there is a high tide, the seawater rises to its highest level, but when there is a low tide, the seawater draws back to its lowest level.

Connection to the Shore

During the high tide, the seawater reaches the shore and covers a larger area of it. However, during the low tide, the seawater flows back towards the sea.

Conclusion

The main difference between high tide and low tide is that the high tide occurs when the seawater rises up to its maximum level possible, covering a larger shore area,  while low tide refers occurs when the sea waves drawback to the sea to its lowest level.  However,  just like the rising of the sun and the appearing of the stars in the night sky, the ocean waves rise and fall every single day along the never-ending seashores of the planet Earth.

Reference:

1. “Tides.” Lumen | Earth Science.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Tide diagram” By Jim Thomas (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Shoeburyness-low-tide-sea-clouds” (CC0) via Pixabay

ncG1vNJzZmiolZm2oq2NnKamZ6edrrV5yKxkraCVYrGqssWeqZ6mk5p6o7HTsJyepl2dtqi0jK2gnZ1dlrulecuormasmZmycA%3D%3D