Almost at any moment the tides change the appearance of the North Sea in an impressive way. Where just the smallest living creatures at low tide make the mudflats crackle and the mudflats invite you to a proper mudflat hike in the Wadden Sea, you get wet feet again a little later and the North Sea invites you to take a dip.
Life on the North Sea coast is determined by the constant alternation of ebb and flow (tides). The tides on the North Sea are constant and last 12 hours and 24 minutes together. Thus the tides shift daily by 48 minutes.
Here you can see the flood times for Burhave and Fedderwardersiel for the next seven days. The floods in Tossens and Eckwarderhörne are ten minutes earlier. As a rule, bathing on the beaches is possible about two hours before and after high tide.
On the North Sea coast you can observe the regular fluctuation of the water level very well. The ebb tide is the period of the decreasing water level. The tide is the period in which the water rises from its lowest to its highest level. The measured difference in water level is called tidal range (3-4 meters in Butjadingen).
The ebb and flood of the North Sea are phenomena caused by the changing interplay of gravitational and centrifugal forces between the Earth, the Sun and the Moon. The attraction of the moon is mainly responsible for the tides. The water of the world's oceans is "lifted" by it and forms a flood mountain. The tidal mountains are particularly high when the gravitational forces of the moon and the sun add up. This is the case with full and new moons (spring tide).
