How Does a Solar Eclipse Affect the Earth's Tides?

Imagine the moon and the sun are like two big friends who both pull on the Earth's oceans. Normally, they work together to make high and low tides, that’s called a spring tide. But when one of them is blocked by the other, like during a solar eclipse, their pulls cancel each other out just a little bit, making a neap tide, which has smaller changes in water levels. It's like two friends pulling in different directions, and for a short while, they're not as strong together.

Take the quiz →

Examples

  1. During a solar eclipse, it’s like the moon is whispering to the sun and saying, 'I’ll cover you for now!'
  2. The tides are like waves in the ocean, during an eclipse, they become calmer for a little while.
  3. Imagine two friends pulling on a rope, if one friend hides behind the other, their combined pull becomes weaker for a moment.

Ask a question

See also

Discussion

Recent activity

Categories: Space · solar eclipse· tides· gravity