Definition
Tidal range is the vertical difference in height between consecutive high and low waters over a tidal cycle. The range of the tide varies between locations and also varies over a range of time scales (Stembridge, 1982). Differences in tidal range are important, as they are often related to variations in coastal processes and morphology (Davies, 1980).
Description
Temporally, tidal range varies due to changes in the position and alignment of the moon and sun relative to the earth. Every fortnight, the largest tidal ranges in semidiurnal regions occur during spring tides, when the moon and sun are in phase around times of new or full moon; while the smallest tidal ranges occur during neap tides, when the moon and sun are out of phase. In diurnal regions, the largest tidal ranges occur every fortnight during equatorial tides, when the moon is over the tropics; while the smallest tidal ranges occur during tropic tides, when the moon is over the equator. Over a month, tidal range...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsBibliography
Davies, J. L., 1980. Geographical Variation in Coastal Development. New York: Longman.
Egbert, G. D., and Erofeeva, S., 2002. Efficient inverse modeling of barotropic ocean tides. Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology, 19(2), 183–204.
Haigh, I. D., Eliot, M., and Pattiaratchi, C., 2011. Modeling global influences of the 18.6-year nodal cycle and quasi-4.4 year cycle on high tidal levels. Journal of Geophysical Research-Oceans, 116, C06025, doi:10.1029/2010JC006645.
Stembridge, J. S., 1982. Tidal range and variation. In Schwartz, M. L. (ed.), Encyclopedia of Beaches and Coastal Environments. Dordrecht: Springer.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this entry
Cite this entry
Haigh, I.D. (2016). Tidal Ranges. In: Kennish, M.J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Estuaries. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8801-4_92
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8801-4_92
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-017-8800-7
Online ISBN: 978-94-017-8801-4
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Earth and Environmental Sciences