answersLogoWhite

0

Actually, the Sun's force due to gravity on the Earth (and thus upon the oceans) is approximately 179.5 times that of the moon. It should also be noted that the Sun's tidal forces are still present, but are only about 45.5% as strong as the moon's tidal forces.

.

The moon has a greater influence on the tides because tidal effects arrise from the difference of gravitational forces at different places on the planet, and the force due to gravity is inversely proportional to the square of the distance between two objects. The diameter of the Earth is approximately 12,700 Km. The Earth is approximately 149,000,000 Km from the Sun, so the difference of the force due to gravity from the sun at the near side of the Earth compared to the far side of the Earth is 0.0170%. The Moon, on the other hand, is approximately 384,000 Km from the Earth, so the difference of the force due to the gravity of the moon at the near side of the Earth compared to the far side of the Earth is 6.72%.

.

The moon's gravitational force difference is therefore about 395 times greater than the sun's gravitational force difference. Remember, the sun's overall gravitational force is still 179.5 times stronger than the moon's gravitational force. So to get the moon's tidal forces in proportion to the sun's tidal forces, we take 395/179.5, which is 2.2. Thus, the moon's tidal forces are 2.2 times greater than the sun's tidal forces, or as we stated at the outset, the sun's tidal forces are 45.5% that of the moon's tidal forces.

User Avatar

Wiki User

15y ago

What else can I help you with?