this post was submitted on 30 Aug 2025
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xkcd #3135: Sea Level

Title text:

They're up there with coral islands, lightning, and caterpillars turning into butterflies.

Transcript:

Transcript will show once it’s been added to explainxkcd.com

Source: https://xkcd.com/3135/

explainxkcd for #3135

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[–] ohulancutash@feddit.uk 106 points 2 weeks ago (4 children)

There are places in the solar system where the tide rips new mountains up every go around.

[–] tacosanonymous@mander.xyz 56 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)
[–] Evil_Shrubbery@thelemmy.club 18 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (3 children)

... some metal band (Dethklok?) recording their song/filming their vid/having the concert on such a moon - the guitar solo intensifies as the band is lifted upwards by a soaring mountain, epicly, with lava flows.

[–] ChickenLadyLovesLife@lemmy.world 17 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

I think it's funny that Dethklok is both a parody metal band and one of the best metal bands around. I don't even really like metal and I love Dethklok.

[–] iamanurd@midwest.social 7 points 2 weeks ago (5 children)

I would love to see them live. Brendon Smalls seems awesome.

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[–] SkaveRat@discuss.tchncs.de 8 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

that's nothing compared to Disaster Area, who need to evacuate a whole planet due to their sound system

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[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 28 points 2 weeks ago
[–] Evil_Shrubbery@thelemmy.club 21 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (2 children)

True!

Going further - "tides" actually rip planets & stars fully apart (binary star systems, around black holes, yo mamma casually strolling through a galaxy).

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[–] 8baanknexer@lemmy.world 11 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Where is that? Is that on one of the moons of Jupiter?

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[–] missphant@lemmy.blahaj.zone 65 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

I remember never believing my parents when they explained it to me as a kid. Clouds being caused by cigarette smoke was reasonable but the moon pulling out the ocean seemed too outrageous.

[–] Zozano@aussie.zone 31 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

As a child, my friend was told by her mother that wind occurs because people group up and blow really hard.

[–] HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world 5 points 2 weeks ago

aw fuck. i missed a chance to say "people suck" when asked that. does anyone have a way to get me back to say 2012?

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[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 51 points 2 weeks ago (5 children)

Been trying to learn about the tides around here so I can tell what I'm seeing on the water. Imagine my joy when I found a Casio, which I collect, with tide and moon phase indicators!

And that's when I learned the Gulf Coast is strange, has diurnal tides (twice a day) the watch can't predict. Took me an hour and a half to figure out it would never function. The moon phase works!

[–] infinitesunrise@slrpnk.net 57 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (2 children)

Huh. TIL that there are three common types of tidal cycles and which one you get depends on geography, location, ocean currents. https://beltoforion.de/en/tides/tidal_cycles.php

And yeah, dinural is apparently the most rare of the three. Wild.

[–] Successful_Try543@feddit.org 8 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

Thanks. I didn't know either that there are places, where the sea level does not rise and fall twice a day.

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[–] Deebster@infosec.pub 14 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

the Gulf Coast is strange, has diurnal tides (twice a day)

Diurnal tides are once a day (semidiurnal is twice a day). By the Gulf Coast, I guess you must mean the Gulf of Mexico. I'm living on the other side of the world in the other diurnal region, so I assume our tides are synchronised!

[–] Tja@programming.dev 7 points 2 weeks ago

Gulf of America, you extreme left Antifa socialist!!1!one

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[–] antlion@lemmy.dbzer0.com 10 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Tidal prediction requires a harmonic analysis of observed tides, and its location specific. Not sure how a watch is supposed to do that other than holding a database of tidal coefficients.

This video contains a lot of interesting history of tidal analysis and prediction:

https://youtu.be/IgF3OX8nT0w

[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 17 points 2 weeks ago

There are adjustments you can make on the watch. Requires tables and whatnot. That's why it took me so long to figure out it wouldn't work!

[–] ThatGuy46475@lemmy.world 7 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Tides go in, tides go out, you can’t explain that.

[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 6 points 2 weeks ago

Casio can't!

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[–] Beacon@fedia.io 32 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

"Tide comes in, time goes out - you can't explain that!"

[–] Tja@programming.dev 9 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

That's some next level transformation, tide becomes time.

[–] Aimeeloulm@feddit.uk 6 points 2 weeks ago

Soon scientists will discover dark tides and dark time, this could explain how tides go out and time seems to slow down or go backwards /s

Maybe one day dark light will be discovered which would help explain shadows and darkness at night or dark places /s

[–] 200ok@lemmy.world 22 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)
[–] warm@kbin.earth 19 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

They'll just say the moon pulls the water around as it circles above the flat disc or something idk

[–] Korhaka@sopuli.xyz 12 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

But the moon alone doesn't orbit at the same rate as the tides. Alternatively they are fucking morons and shouldn't be respected so who cares.

[–] frog@feddit.uk 6 points 2 weeks ago

"The earth tilts when the moon hits far end of earth during moonset and that's why there is low tide. A high tide happens during moonrise when the moon drags it up slightly."

[–] yermaw@sh.itjust.works 8 points 2 weeks ago

Thats just the tilting from where the elephants shrug

[–] psoul@lemmy.world 17 points 2 weeks ago (5 children)

Everyone was taught the tides look like two giant water bulges going around the earth in line with the moon.

That representation is oversimplified and false.

This is how the tides look like at a global level. It’s messed up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zi7N06JXD4

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[–] Darkassassin07@lemmy.ca 15 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

Imagine being out exploring new islands, not realizing its low tide. You setup camp for the night on an island that's relatively flat and close to current sea-level. Then while you're sleeping the tide comes in and washes your whole camp out to sea...

[–] Valmond@lemmy.world 20 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

Come to the beach here in Bordeaux (well, on the coast) and see tourists set up their stuff at low ebb but forgetting they have to watch out for the flood.

[–] MrsDoyle@sh.itjust.works 12 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

There's an island near me that has a pedestrian causeway at low tide. There are huge signs warning to check tide times or get cut off, but still people don't get it.

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[–] drunkpostdisaster@lemmy.world 10 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

if you are exploring islands you probably have a solid idea of how tides work.

[–] Darkassassin07@lemmy.ca 13 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

You probably should, but that doesn't mean you do. It's not like anyone makes you take a quiz to go wander around outside.

Plenty of people get themselves into trouble all the time exploring places/things they know nothing about.

[–] pinball_wizard@lemmy.zip 12 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

It's not like anyone makes you take a quiz to go wander around outside.

I knew it! I am so not answering any more of his questions, next time I go out.

[–] HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world 8 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

WHAT! is your favourite colour?

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[–] HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world 6 points 2 weeks ago

i lived near the beach for a while and, uh, i have seen tourists do the stupid. i posit they count.

[–] Rcklsabndn@sh.itjust.works 14 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

And when Mercury is in retrograde, you can make an excuse for anything being kind of shitty or off.

[–] cdf12345@lemmy.zip 12 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

There better not be mercury in my Gatorade!

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[–] DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works 13 points 2 weeks ago

Nah, that's just Poseidon having a bad mood today. Just have to sacrifice your first child to make it stop for 10 years.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 11 points 2 weeks ago

"Their moon is tidally locked" is an absolutely metal thing to say about a planet.

[–] merc@sh.itjust.works 10 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

I wonder if anyone has ever done the math on how much (in L or kg) water is moved by the moon each day. It's got to be something absurd.

[–] Jankatarch@lemmy.world 7 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (1 children)

Just wanted to mention I see your pfp on every post.

Thank you for keeping lemmy alive and making like 4% of the total posts. Seeing you post brightens up my day.

No homo.

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[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 7 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

I have to assume it's about one moon's worth, divided by the distance squared.

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[–] Evil_Shrubbery@thelemmy.club 10 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

Well, tides on moons (eg around gassy supergiants :)) are fairly usual.

So perhaps it's not as much as the tides being "sci-fi" (sci??) but the relative size of Earth's Moon (it's basically a binary planet situation where they orbit around each other).

So, the sheer size of our moon as seen from the planet's surface is the rarity.
(Then again, on a moon around a supergiant the same experience could be had from one tiny beings pov.)

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[–] Quilotoa@lemmy.ca 8 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Tides in the Bay of Fundy, Canada are 16 metres (50 feet).

[–] Olhonestjim@lemmy.world 5 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

See, that's the part that confuses the hell outta me. How can water be higher in one spot than others just due to the Moon's gravity? Yeah it's the geography of the area, got it. But still, how?

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[–] dariusj18@lemmy.world 7 points 2 weeks ago

I think lightning would be crazy to anyone who never experienced a planet with it. Like, "WTF, sometimes your sky does what?"

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