TIDESChapter 8.PPT

Rotary Tidal Motion Amphidromic System In the dynamic model of tides, movement of tides across ocean basins is deflected by the Coriolis effect and is blocked by continental landmasses. The result is a rotary wave, which each day completes two cycles around the basin if the tide is semidiurnal or one cycle if it is diurnal. High tide at the ocean basin’s western edge creates a pressure gradient sloping downward towards the east. As water flows down the gradient, the Coriolis effect deflects water towards the equator, where it accumulates and establishes a pressure gradient sloping downward to