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If high tides are observed on a particular date at a place in India, one may observe

a) low tides in the United States
b) low tides in Australia
c) high tides in both United States and Australia
d) low tides in India after half a month.

1 Answer

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Final answer:

Tides on Earth are influenced by the Moon's gravitational forces. High tide in one location does not mean simultaneous low tides in faraway countries like the US or Australia. Each location experiences a unique pattern of two high and two low tides daily due to Earth's rotation under the tidal bulge.

Step-by-step explanation:

Understanding Ocean Tides

When high tides are observed at a location in India, the implication is that the Earth's rotation has brought that particular region into alignment with one of the tidal bulges caused by the Moon's gravitational pull. Thus, it is incorrect to think that high tide at one location, such as India, would be immediately connected to low tides in the United States or Australia, or that one could predict tides half a month later in India. Tides are a global phenomenon influenced by the position and gravitational forces of the Moon and Sun, but each geographic location experiences its own pattern of tides due to the Earth's rotation. Virtually every coastal location on Earth experiences two high and two low tides per day because of the rotational movement of Earth under the tidal bulge.

Therefore, if it's high tide in one location, areas roughly a quarter of the way around the world from that location would be experiencing low tide, but this doesn't exclusively pertain to any specific country such as the United States or Australia. Furthermore, the time between consecutive high tides (and likewise for low tides) is approximately 12 hours and 25.2 minutes, adjusting slightly as the Moon orbits Earth.

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