The view that much of the energy of ocean tides is dissipated in deep water, rather than in shallow coastal seas, now finds observational support. Curiously, the results bear upon our understanding of climate change. The Moon is receding from the Earth at about 4 centimetres a year, as measured by laser reflectors left there by astronauts. What does this motion have to do with the ocean circulation? By Kepler's laws, the recession implies that there is a continuing loss of energy in the Earth-Moon system of 3 X 10~(12) watts, or 3 terawatts, mostly in the ocean. But where in the ocean does this energy go, and what are its effects? On page 775 of this issue, Egbert and Ray produce evidence for the seemingly lunatic conclusion that dissipation of tidal energy in the deep sea, and the resulting mixing, are controlling features of the overall ocean circulation.
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机译：现在，关于海洋潮汐的大部分能量都在深水中而不是在浅海中消散的观点现在得到了观测的支持。奇怪的是，结果取决于我们对气候变化的理解。根据宇航员留在地球上的激光反射器的测量，月球正以每年约4厘米的速度从地球后退。该议案与海洋环流有什么关系？根据开普勒定律，衰退意味着地球-月球系统中的能量持续损失3 X 10〜（12）瓦，即3太瓦，主要发生在海洋中。但是，这种能量在海洋中流向何方，其作用是什么？在本期杂志的第775页上，Egbert和Ray提出了看似疯狂的结论，即潮汐能在深海中的消散以及由此产生的混合作用正在控制着整个海洋环流的特征。
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