The 18.6 yr nodal modulation in the tides of Southern European coasts

Abstract

The nodal modulation of the diurnal ( K 1 and O 1) and semi-diurnal ( M 2 and K 2) tidal constituents at the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and the eastern Atlantic is estimated and its spatial variability mapped. Fourteen hourly tide gauge records each spanning more than 18 years are considered in this analysis. Ten tide gauges are located in the Mediterranean Sea and four in the Bay of Biscay. The nodal modulation of the most energetic tidal constituent ( M 2) reaches up to 5 cm at the eastern Atlantic coasts, while within the Mediterranean Sea its modulation is in general less than 1.1 cm. The largest K 2 nodal modulation found is 3.7 cm in the eastern Atlantic coasts. In the Mediterranean Sea, smaller modulation amplitudes, ranging between 0.4 and 1.4 cm are found. The K 1 tide constituent has the largest amplitude nodal modulation within the Mediterranean Sea of 1.9 cm in the north Adriatic Sea, which is also larger than the modulation of this constituent at the eastern Atlantic coasts. The O 1 tide constituent has the highest amplitude nodal modulation (1.4 cm) at the eastern Atlantic coasts. In the Mediterranean Sea the maximum value is 1 cm in the north Adriatic Sea. The derived nodal modulations of the diurnal and semi-diurnal constituents follow, in general, the equilibrium tidal theory. The tidal amplitudes for all four components do not indicate significant secular trends for most tide gauges. The tidal phases indicate significant negative trends for all four tidal constituents within the central and eastern Mediterranean Sea.