Aegir on the Trent River
December 16, 2006
Provided and copyright by: Ron Young
Summary authors & editors: Ron Young
The Aegir on the River Trent is one of the two larger tidal bores in the United Kingdom (UK). This tidal phenomenon can be best viewed either in the spring (evening) or late summer (morning). The name Aegir is derived from the Norse God of the sea. On the above photo, the Aegir is shown from the West Stockwith side of the Trent, on the morning of September 10, 2006. This bore was approximately 2.5 to 3.0 ft (0.76 m to 0.91 m) high. Since tides are retarded by friction when they reach shallower water, if the river configuration has the right size and shape, the tide piles up and forms a low wall of water that moves forcefully upstream as the tide continues to rise. West Stockwith is about 60 miles (100 km) upstream from where the Trent empties into the North Sea. The vertical streak on the lower left of the photo is a reflection of the Sun from the water onto the stone wall at the end of the Chesterfield canal.
For more about tidal bores see the links below and the following articles:
LYNCH, D.K. (1982). "Tidal Bores." Scientific American, Vol. 247, No. 4, Oct., pp. 134-143.
BARTSCH-WINKLER, S., and LYNCH, D.K. (1988). "Catalog of Worldwide Tidal Bore Occurrences and Characteristics." US Geological Survey Circular, No. 1022, 17 pages.
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