Even though the Moon is 378,000 km away from Earth, its gravitational force is strong enough to move the oceans. When Earth rotates so that a mass of water is facing the Moon, water rises in its direction: this bulge produces a high tide. At the same time, the Moons gravitational pull on water on the other side of Earth is much weaker. This water is affected by the centrifugal force created by the rotation of the EarthMoon system and tends to bulge outward, creating another high tide. If Earth were made only of rigid materials, it would still be deformed by the action of these two forces and would be egg-shaped.

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Caption: Even though the Moon is 378,000 km away from Earth, its gravitational force is strong enough to move the oceans. When Earth rotates so that a mass of water is facing the Moon, water rises in its direction: this bulge produces a high tide. At the same time, the Moons gravitational pull on water on the other side of Earth is much weaker. This water is affected by the centrifugal force created by the rotation of the EarthMoon system and tends to bulge outward, creating another high tide. If Earth were made only of rigid materials, it would still be deformed by the action of these two forces and would be egg-shaped.

Credit: Album / Universal Images Group

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Image size: 2208 × 1316 px | 8.3 MB

Print size: 18.7 × 11.1 cm | 869.3 × 518.1 in (300 dpi)

Keywords: 58464 • ASTRONOMIA • ASTRONOMY • CELESTIAL BODY • CELESTIAL OBJECT MOVING THE OCEAN • COLOR • COLOUR • FLUSH • HEAVENLY BODY • ILLUSTRATION • ILLUSTRATIONS • ILUSTRATION • MOON'S FORCE OF ATTRACTION • TIDE • WATER AND OCEAN