The Moon’s Wobble Will Cause Major Flooding in the 2030s

NASA is predicting an increase in tidal flooding on the U.S. Coast

What’s the moon good for anyways? It isn’t made of cheese, doesn’t have an active outpost, and is in general a pretty boring rock. Yet it still exerts a force of gravity on the Earth.

This force causes ripples and waves in our oceans. When the moon and the Earth align in just the right way, this gravitational force causes tidal floods. However, with rising sea levels, NASA expects more drastic high tide flooding in the 2030s.

High tide floods occur when the tide rises above its normal average by half a meter. Water can then spill over into streets or rise up from drains and sewers. You’ve seen the pictures of people knee-deep in floodwater — that’s often the result of these floods.

This study was lead by the NASA Sea Level Change Science Team from the University of Hawaii. NASA’s administrator, Bill Nelson, explained the findings:

Low-lying areas near sea level are increasingly at risk and suffering due to the increased flooding, and it will only get worse. The combination of the Moon’s gravitational pull, rising sea levels, and climate change will continue to exacerbate coastal flooding on our coastlines and across the world.

Starting in the mid-2030s, the coastal United States will see more flooding. Improvements in infrastructure need to be implemented now. Ten floods in a month will bankrupt small businesses while also spreading disease.

The moon wobbles as part of its normal orbit, repeating every eighteen or so years. It cycles through periods of high and low tides. Even though we are in a high tide phase of the cycle, we aren’t seeing so much flooding.

Rising sea levels will cause way more flooding in subsequent cycles. Urban planners will need to account for sea levels when they’re deciding on building new structures. An urban planner might design a building to withstand hurricane floods. But it doesn’t proof the building against a dozen high tide floods within a month.

Let’s remember that the moon itself, is not to blame for the flooding. Our reliance on fossil fuels and non-renewable energy raised sea levels. Meanwhile, the United States, in particular, has dropped the ball on funding infrastructure.

Recently, part of a high-rise building in Florida collapsed, killing the people inside. The major structural damage was identified in 2018 and never fixed. This isn’t an isolated incident — many states need an overhaul in their infrastructure. Roads, bridges, and buildings remain highly vulnerable.

Investing in infrastructure could prevent the worst effects of tidal flooding. But we will still struggle with disastrous anthropogenic changes to the environment. Oil companies are continuing their misinformation to campaign to influence legislation. Will we be ready for flooding ten years from now?

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