I was looking at the clouds and thinking about the earth while wondering this?
In: Physics
Why do you think it would be higher in the east? Do you mean because we are rotating towards the east, and so it gets pushed up?
That wouldn’t have an effect, because the rotation is continuous and smooth. Gravity makes sure that sea level is uniform.
The tides do have an effect though. The biggest component of the tides is caused by the moon, although the sun also has a significant effect. The highest tides (“spring tides”) are caused when the sun and moon are lined up with respect to the earth.
Tides are caused because the gravitational force decreases with distance. This means that the water on the side of the earth facing the moon is pulled more strongly toward it than the water on the far side, and so the water bulges away from the earth on both sides. This is high tide; about six hours later, when the earth has turned through 90 degrees, that same point will now experience low tide.
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