Seasonal tide variations from tide gauges and altimetry

Tide gauge and altimetry observations have been used to investigate time va riation of the tides on the European Shelf. A significant seasonal modulati on of several major diurnal and semi-diurnal constituents was detected in b oth data sets. A strong correlation with non-tidal. variability suggests su rge-tide interaction as the cause of this modulation. The agreement between the altimetry and tide gauge results demonstrates the potential for the us e of altimetry in the improvement of existing shelf models. (C) 1999 Elsevi er Science Ltd. All rights reserved.