Moon and Tides

It is a wonderful feeling when a question is asked by a child that you cannot answer. It highlights the fact that growth is always possible. Today my son asked the question “why does the ocean go higher at high tide when there is a full Moon and a new Moon?”

There is necessary context for this question to make sense. The moon and sun have gravitational forces like the Earth. The distance from the Moon to Earth and the orientation of the Earth to the Moon and the Sun has an impact on the gravity we feel. This is the gravity that impacts the Oceans and causes the greater tides.

Now to answer my son’s question: When the moon is full or new, the Sun and Moon are on opposite sides of the Earth and exhibit their combined gravitational pull. This causes the higher high tide and lower low tide. The same is true for the new moon approximately two weeks later. There are other factors at play such as a “super Moon” when the Moon is closer to the Earth and this also greatens the tidal levels.