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ARCHIVED - Activities - 14. Tidal Times
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OBJECTIVES:
To study the daily movements of tides.
ACTIVITIES:
Measuring how fast the tide comes in and the height of the incoming tide during different hourly intervals of the day.
BACKGROUND:
In most regions of Atlantic Canada there are two high and two low tides each day. Some places have only one tide. Refer to the introductory module for more information.
These activities can be done as part of a field trip.
| LOW | HIGH | |
|---|---|---|
| Nova Scotia | ||
| Bay St. Lawrence | 0.8 | 1.2 |
| Margaree | 0.7 | 1.1 |
| Port Hood | 0.9 | 1.3 |
| Antigonish Harbour | 1.0 | 1.6 |
| Pictou | 1.2 | 2.0 |
| Cape Cliff | 1.7 | 2.6 |
New Brunswick |
||
| Cape Tormentine | 1.3 | 2.0 |
| Shediac Bay | 0.8 | 1.6 |
| Pt. Sapin | 0.9 | 1.4 |
| Portage Island | 1.1 | 1.6 |
| Lower Neguac | 1.0 | 1.6 |
| Shippagan | 1.5 | 2.1 |
| Bathurst | 1.6 | 2.3 |
| Dalhousie | 2.0 | 3.0 |
Prince Edward Island |
||
| Souris | 1.1 | 1.7 |
| Charlottetown | 1.8 | 2.9 |
| Borden | 1.6 | 2.5 |
| Summerside | 1.5 | 2.2 |
| Miminegash | 0.8 | 1.2 |
| Malpeque | 0.8 | 1.1 |
| North Lake | 0.7 | 1.1 |
| South shore of Nova Scotia | |
| Halifax Harbour | 2.2 |
| St. Margarets Bay | 2.1 |
| Shelburne | 2.4 |
| Cape Sable | 3.3 |
| Yarmouth | 4.3 |
Bay of Fundy |
|
| Brier Island | 5.8 |
| St. John | 9.0 |
| Cobequid Bay | 15.3 |
| Cumberland Basin | 14.0 |
PROCEDURES:
Obtain tidal charts from your local newspaper. Tide tables can also be purchased from your local Fisheries and Oceans office, bookstores, your provincial Geographic Information Centre, or the Canadian Hydrographic Service in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia (see references).
Familiarize yourself with the charts.
Try to pick a day for your trip when you arrive at a high tide or at least at ebb tide.
Experiment I
- When you arrive on site, put a flag at the water's edge. Record the time.
- Every hour, mark the position of the water with a flag of a different colour and record the time the flag was placed.
- Measure the distance between each flag. At the end of the field trip you will be able to determine how fast the tide was moving at different times of the day.
- When you get home you can graph the results.
Distance graph:
Distance Graph
Experiment II
Check the tidal range chart above and mark a stick in intervals for measuring the height of the incoming tide.
- Label these intervals on the stick clearly so they can be seen from far away.
- Drive the stick down into a crevice in the rock or in the sand close to the water line.
Height graph:
Height Graph
14. ACTIVITY MATERIALS
| MATERIALS: | several coloured flags on poles, watch, graph paper, pencil |
| LOCATION: | outdoors |
| TIME REQUIRED: | 3-6 hours |
| MINIMUM PEOPLE REQUIRED: | 1 |
| SUBJECT: | Science, Mathematics |
| GRADE LEVEL: | 9 and up |
| KEYWORDS: | tides, high tide, low tide, graph |
