Some of the year’s highest tides will hit Southern California beaches this week, including: Grandview Beach, Beacons Beach, Stonesteps Beach, Moonlight Beach, Del Mar – Dog Beach, Torrey Pines Beach, Black’s Beach and the La Jolla Cove.
The swells are caused by an astronomical event called “king tide.”
King tides come between two and four times a year when the gravitational forces of the sun, the Earth and a full moon are all in alignment.
Low tide is a great time for beachcombing.
If there are any ocean swells, you can expect minor coastal flooding at high tide, according to the National Weather Service.
These highest of high tides are a result of the position of the moon and sun, according to the Weather Service, and occur at least once a year.
2012-12-12 2:52 PM PST -1.90 feet Low Tide
2012-12-12 4:43 PM PST Sunset
2012-12-12 9:15 PM PST 4.59 feet High Tide
2012-12-13 12:42 AM PST New Moon
2012-12-13 2:12 AM PST 1.51 feet Low Tide
2012-12-13 6:42 AM PST Sunrise
2012-12-13 8:29 AM PST 7.76 feet High Tide
2012-12-13 3:37 PM PST -2.03 feet Low Tide
2012-12-13 4:43 PM PST Sunset
2012-12-13 10:03 PM PST 4.66 feet High Tide
2012-12-14 3:00 AM PST 1.56 feet Low Tide
2012-12-14 6:43 AM PST Sunrise
2012-12-14 9:15 AM PST 7.60 feet High Tide
2012-12-14 4:23 PM PST -1.88 feet Low Tide
2012-12-14 4:44 PM PST Sunset
2012-12-14 10:51 PM PST 4.68 feet High Tide
2012-12-15 3:51 AM PST 1.67 feet Low Tide
2012-12-15 6:43 AM PST Sunrise
2012-12-15 10:02 AM PST 7.17 feet High Tide
2012-12-15 4:44 PM PST Sunset
2012-12-15 5:09 PM PST -1.52 feet Low Tide
2012-12-15 11:40 PM PST 4.68 feet High Tide
2012-12-16 4:46 AM PST 1.85 feet Low Tide
2012-12-16 6:44 AM PST Sunrise
2012-12-16 10:51 AM PST 6.51 feet High Tide
Here is how flooding has looked during storms
The group that named the tides “king tides” says what happens this week gives us a glimpse of what the state can expect as sea level rises in the coming years.
The California King Tides Initiative sites a report released earlier this year, the National Academy of Sciences projects approximately one foot of sea-level rise by 2050 and up to five feet by 2100 along the California coast.
