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Tides · question bank

Tides question bank

Seventy-plus questions covering the whole of Tides: what a tide is, why the Moon raises two bulges, the 24 h 50 min tidal day, spring and neap tides, why range varies so much by place, tide types and tables, tides and people, and tidal friction across deep time. Work through a section at a time, or dip in wherever you like — every question has a full worked solution.

Foundation 17Core 25Stretch 19Challenge 10

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All 71 questions

Showing 15 of 71 matching questions.

Q1

FoundationWhat a tide is

What is a tide?

Q2

FoundationWhat a tide is

What is the difference between a wave and a tide?

Q3

FoundationWhat a tide is

High water is 5.2 m and low water is 1.4 m. What is the tidal range?

Q4

CoreWhat a tide is

A tide board reads 6.1 m at high water and 0.9 m at low water. What is the tidal range, and is this closer to Kochi's typical range or Mumbai's?

Q5

CoreWhat a tide is

Why is a tsunami not the same thing as a tide, even though it is sometimes wrongly called a 'tidal wave'?

Q6

StretchWhat a tide is

A harbour's tide gauge shows the water level rising steadily from 0.5 m to 4.9 m over six hours, then falling back to 0.6 m over the next six hours. A friend says 'that's a wave.' Explain what is wrong with calling it a wave, using two features of the data.

Q7

ChallengeWhat a tide is

A coastal town experiences three separate events in one week: (1) a gentle rise and fall of the sea over 12 hours, repeated twice a day; (2) choppy 3-second ripples during a windy afternoon; (3) a single, unpredicted wall of water after a distant earthquake. Match each event to its correct name and give one piece of evidence for each match.

Q8

FoundationThe two bulges

Why does the Moon's gravity make the ocean move at all, even though the pull is very weak?

Q9

FoundationThe two bulges

How many tidal bulges does Earth's ocean have?

Q10

CoreThe two bulges

What causes the far-side tidal bulge?

Q11

CoreThe two bulges

If the Moon pulled on every part of Earth with exactly the same force, what would happen to the tides?

Q12

StretchThe two bulges

Explain, in two or three sentences, why 'the far bulge is flung off by Earth's spin' is a misconception, using one piece of evidence that rules it out.

Q13

StretchThe two bulges

The near side of Earth is about 1.7% closer to the Moon than Earth's centre. Using the rule that gravity varies as 1 ÷ distance², is the pull on the near side more than 1.7% stronger, less than 1.7% stronger, or exactly 1.7% stronger than at the centre?

Q14

ChallengeThe two bulges

A student argues: 'if the Moon's pull on the near ocean is only about 3.4% stronger than on the solid Earth, that tiny difference can't possibly move an entire ocean.' Give the strongest counter-argument from this topic.

Q15

FoundationThe tidal day

About how much later does high tide arrive each day, compared with the day before?

Stuck? The lessons explain every idea these questions use.