Tides on Earth are primarily caused by the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon and, to a lesser extent, the Sun on Earth's oceans. The Moon's gravity pulls water toward it, creating a bulge or high tide on the side of Earth facing the Moon. Simultaneously, on the opposite side of Earth, another high tide bulge forms due to the centrifugal force resulting from the Earth-Moon system's rotation around their common center of mass. As Earth rotates, different areas pass through these bulges, experiencing two high tides and two low tides approximately every 24 hours
. The Sun also contributes to tides, but its effect is about half as strong as the Moon's because, although the Sun is much more massive, it is much farther away, which reduces its tidal influence
. When the Earth, Moon, and Sun align during full or new moons, their combined gravitational pull causes especially high and low tides known as spring tides. When the Sun and Moon are at right angles relative to Earth, moderate neap tides occur
. In summary, tides result from the interplay of gravitational forces from the Moon and Sun and Earth's rotation, causing the regular rise and fall of sea levels around the globe
