Why is a spring tide so much higher than a normal high tide? A. because the Sun is aligned with the moon B. because the moon is aligned with Earth C. because the moon is directly over the north pole D. because the Sun is directly over the north pole

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Physics

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27 January, 14:05

Why is a spring tide so much higher than a normal high tide? A. because the Sun is aligned with the moon B. because the moon is aligned with Earth C. because the moon is directly over the north pole D. because the Sun is directly over the north pole

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Marie Andersen · Answer 1

A. because the Sun is aligned with the moon

Explanation:

There are two types of tides:

- Spring tides: spring tides occur when the Sun, the Earth and the Moon are aligned along the same line. When this occurs, the gravitational attractions exerted by the Sun and the Moon on the Earth are along the same line - as a result, the water of the oceans is pulled "stronger" along this line, causing a higher tide than normal.

- Neat tides: neat tides occur when the Sun and the Moon are placed at right angle with respect to the Earth - in this case, the tide level is lower, because the gravitational attractions exerted by the Sun and the Moon on the Earth are perpendicular to each other.