Question

If you compare the gravitational force on the earth due to the sun to that due to the moon, you would find that the Sun’s pull is greater than the moon’s pull, (you can check this yourself using the data available in the succeeding exercises). However, the tidal effect of the moon’s pull is greater than the tidal effect of the sun. Why?

Answer 1

The tidal effect is inversely proportional to the cube of the distance while the gravitational force is inversely proportional to the square of the distance. Since the distance between sun and earth is much greater than that between the moon and earth, the effect observed due to the moon is more that due to the sun.