The time interval between two successive primary and secondary tides at a place is more than 12 hours because (1) of the rotation of earth about its axis (2) the moon also moves round the earth in the same direction of the earth's rotation (3) the moon also moves round the earth in the opposite direction of the earth's rotation (4) the earth revolves round the sun

Tides are long-period waves that roll across the oceans due to the gravitational interactions with the Moon and Sun. Understanding how Earth's rotation influences these tides is crucial to comprehending their patterns. Although a common assumption is that tides simply follow the Earth's rotation, taking 12 hours between highs and lows, this is an oversimplification. In fact, because Earth rotates on its axis once every 24 hours, it would seem logical to expect two high tides and two low tides each day, each tide occurring 12 hours apart.

However, the reality is that the timing of tides is more complex. As the Earth rotates, different points on the planet come into alignment with the Moon. But Earth's rotation alone doesn't account for the slightly over 12 hours interval between successive tides. The role of the Moon's own orbit is a key player in this slight extension of the tidal interval, which we'll address in more detail in the next section. Earth's rotation thus sets a baseline for tidal patterns but does not singularly determine the timing of the tides we experience.

Now, let's address how the Moon's orbit affects the timing of tides. The Moon orbits Earth in the same direction that Earth rotates, making a complete orbit approximately every 29.5 days. This orbital movement adds to the complexity of tidal patterns. Each day, the Moon moves to the east in its orbit around Earth, which means from one day to the next, Earth has to rotate a little bit more for the same location on Earth to realign with the Moon. This additional rotation takes time—about 50 minutes more.

Therefore, rather than a 12-hour cycle, we expect each successive tide to occur roughly every 12 hours and 25 minutes, a phenomenon that explains the observed tidal intervals being greater than 12 hours. To illustrate this, imagine Earth as a large classroom clock with two hands pointing towards the Moon. As the clock ticks (Earth rotates), it also slides slightly to the right (Moon's orbit), requiring more time for the same number 'hour' on this clock face to point at the Moon again, resulting in the extended time between consecutive tides.

While the Moon is the dominant force in creating tides, the Sun also plays a significant role. Despite being much farther away than the Moon, the Sun's immense mass allows it to exert a substantial gravitational pull on Earth's waters. When the Sun, Earth, and Moon align during new and full moons, their combined gravitational forces produce the highest high tides and lowest low tides, known as spring tides.

On the other hand, when the Sun and Moon are at right angles relative to Earth, their gravitational pulls partly cancel out, resulting in lower high tides and higher low tides, called neap tides. These tidal differences happen over a fortnightly cycle, superimposed on the daily tidal cycle influenced by Earth's rotation and the Moon's orbit. It's important to differentiate that while the Sun's influence is crucial in modulating the intensity of the tides, it doesn't affect the tidal interval linked to the Moon's orbit and Earth's rotation. Learners can visualize the Sun's role as that of a conductor in an orchestra, setting the beat for the tidal extremes without changing the tempo of the daily tidal 'music' produced by the Earth-Moon duet.