Our local news stations have been “buzzing” this summer’s regarding the King Tides that have been very noticeable on our shorelines. Lissette and I happened to be at Makaiwa Bay to witness first hand the effects of these rare high tide events. A King Tide is a nick name often used to describe exceptionally high “Spring” tides.

“Spring” refers to the ‘springing forth’ of the tide during a new and full moon. The moon follows an elliptical path around the Earth in its monthly orbit, and the Earth follows an elliptical path in its yearly orbit around the sun. This means that, at times, the moon and the sun are closer to Earth. When the moon circles closest to the Earth, it is in a position called perigee. When the Earth circles closest to the sun, it is in a position called perihelion.

The gravitational pull from both the moon and sun are even greater at these close distances, making King Tides more pronounced (higher and lower) than regular Spring Tides. Imagine the 3 spheres aligned with a full moon and tightly bunched together!

In 2017 King Tides occurred in Hawaii as we approached the June 21 summer solstice as well as July 21-24 and August 19-22. The video below is from Sunday August 20, 2017 at around 3:31 PM-right at the apex of the King Tide-in Makaiwa Bay.

Glimpse of the Future?

These extra-high tides may give a glimpse of the future global warming events that may cause the sea to rise to these levels. Scientists predict that King Tide levels could be considered “normal” tides in the future therefore giving us a great forecast. Time will tell as they say but in either case King Tides are another interesting, natural event that our island home experiences.

Click Here to sign up for my blog

Click here to search Mauna Lani Resort Properties

Written by Rick Oliver on August 29, 2017
Posted in: Hawaii Life | Tags: high tide, king's tide, summer solstice