Tide's up everybody!
Some of the year’s highest tides will hit California shorelines this week.
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.
The swells are expected to cause some large breakers along the beaches and could cause minor coastal flooding as well, according to the National Weather Service.
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.
They are asking people to take photos of the tides and post them to a tide flickr page.
King Tide events for the 2012-2013 season:
- November 13-15
- December 12-14
- January 9-11
- February 7-9
Possible flooding concerns according to California King Tides Initiative:
North Coast/Humboldt: Eureka: Woodley Island; Indian Island; Del Norte St. Pier; Halvorsen Park/The Adorni Center. Arcata Marsh and Wildlife Sanctuary. King Salmon Beach. New Navy Base Road in Manila/Samoa.
San Francisco Area Outer Coast: Ocean Beach; Stinson Beach; Pacifica: Beach Blvd. Sea Wall near the municipal pier; Laguna Salada. City of Capitola. City of Santa Cruz.
Inner SF Bay: Proposed Treasure Island development site. South Bay: Redwood Creek and proposed Redwood City dev. site, Dumbarton Bridge. Marin: Corte Madera, Richardson Bay, Gallinas Creek (north of China Camp).
Central Coast: Monterey: Marina State Beach, Monterey State Beach, Cannery Row; Carmel: Carmel Beach; Big Sur: McWay Falls at Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park, Andrew Molera Beach, Garrapata Beach, Pfeiffer Beach.
Santa Barbara Area: Isla Vista beaches, Goleta Beach County Park, Leadbetter Beach, Butterfly Beach, Miramar Beach, Padaro Lane, Carpinteria Salt Marsh, Hobson State Beach, Faria, and Emma Wood State Beach.
Santa Monica: Broad Beach, Malibu shoreline homes, Marina del Rey, Port of Long Beach, Port of Los Angeles.
Orange County: Seal Beach/Sunset Beach Oceanfront (City of Seal Beach), Huntington Harbor (Huntington Beach), Newport Beach islands and peninsula (Newport Beach).
San Diego: San Diego Bay, Oceanside Beach, San Elijo Lagoon, Del Mar Dog Beach/San Dieguito Lagoon Entrance, Torrey Pines (where Penasquitos enters the ocean), La Jolla Shores, Mission Beach, and Imperial Beach/Tijuana Estuary.
Photo Credit: Getty Images/David McNew