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Q79 (CDS-I/2013) Geography › World Physical Geography › Ocean water properties Answer Verified

The highest of all spring tides occurs at the time of—

Result
Your answer: —  ·  Correct: B
Explanation

Spring tides occur twice a month during the full moon and new moon phases when the Sun, Moon, and Earth align in a straight line (syzygy), combining their gravitational forces [3]. While spring tides happen regularly, their magnitude varies based on astronomical cycles. The highest of all spring tides, often referred to as equinoctial spring tides, occur when these moon phases coincide with the equinoxes. During the equinoxes (March and September), the Sun is directly over the equator, maximizing the solar tide-generating force on the Earth's equatorial bulge. When this alignment coincides with the moon's perigee (closest approach to Earth), it results in the maximum possible tidal range. Although solstices also influence tides, the solar semi-diurnal tide specifically peaks near the time of the equinox, leading to the highest annual tidal ranges.

Sources

  1. [1] FUNDAMENTALS OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY, Geography Class XI (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 13: Movements of Ocean Water > Tides based on the Sun, Moon and the Earth Positions > p. 110
  2. [3] https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/springtide.html
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SIMILAR QUESTIONS

CDS-II · 2009 · Q23 Relevance score: 4.37

High spring tides occur at new moon and full moon because the

NDA-I · 2011 · Q51 Relevance score: 4.00

The exceptionally high and low tides that occur at the time of the new moon or the full moon when the Sun, the Moon and the Earth are approximately aligned is called :

IAS · 2001 · Q32 Relevance score: 2.03

Assertion (A) : During the Neap Tides, the high tide is lower and the low tide is higher than usual. Reason (R) : The Neap Tide, unlike the Spring Tide, occurs on the New Moon instead of on the Full Moon.

NDA-I · 2019 · Q6 Relevance score: 0.33

Spring tides refer to

CAPF · 2018 · Q50 Relevance score: -0.24

The tides whose height is 20 percent more than normal tide are called