I think the reason some people might believe this claim is because we’re taught in school that the moon’s gravity causes the tides. I think the reasoning goes, “well if the moon’s gravity can affect the tides, surely it can affect smaller things too”

  • qfjp@lemmy.one
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    1 year ago

    The moon would affect the tides regardless of how long it’s been there. Calculating the effect of the moon’s gravity on the earth is a standard exercise in a graduate classical physics course. In essence, the moon’s gravity “squashes” the earth at the two poles, causing tides at the nearest and farthest end of the earth.