The steps along the Alki Beach Promenade were inundated on Dec 4 in a high tide that rose to 11.8. The King Tide happening on Dec. 15 and 16 will be higher, rising to 13 feet.
The highest tides of the season arrive this week preceded by a minus 3.6 tide the evening of Dec. 13. then on Saturday Dec. 15 at 6:50AM the tide will have come up, and up until it reaches a +13.0 foot high tide which should see some water coming over lower bulkheads.
Though the weather is calling for rain and temperatures in the low to mid 40's there is no stormfront predicted that would accentuate the tidal effects.
So called King Tides (a non-scientific term) simply refers to the very highest tides. They occur when the earth, moon and sun are aligned at perigee (when the moon is closest to earth) and perihelion (when the earth is closest to the sun), resulting in the largest tidal range seen during a year since the gravitational effects are magnified.
The tidal chart is here.
Here's the quick list of the coming low and King Tides:
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Tide Peak Time: 10:41PM
Tide Level: - 3.6
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Saturday, December 15, 2012 ** KING TIDE **
Tide Peak Time: 6:50AM
Tide Level: +13.0
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Sunday, December 16, 2012 ** KING TIDE **
Tide Peak Time: 7:34AM
Tide Level: +13.0