CatchClockAustralian tide times by place
Each page here is computed from the harmonic constants of the place's own tide gauge and gives heights in metres above Lowest Astronomical Tide, the datum of Queensland's charts. Each also carries its own check. Maritime Safety Queensland publishes the mean sea level and the highest astronomical tide for each standard port, and the Bureau of Meteorology's predictions are open in the Queensland Tide Tables — so both sit next to ours below.
5.8 min
2 cm
4.9%
The column to read first is the range: the rise from low to high in one cycle, and what decides how much an error in the hour costs. The next two are the checks — the highest astronomical tide as Queensland publishes it and as we compute it, then how many minutes our tide times sit from the Bureau's in the middle case.
| Place | Mean range | Highest astronomical tide, MSQ / ours | Median time difference from the Bureau | Tide type | Tide gauge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mackay, QLD | 3.65 m | 6.62 / 6.55 m | 4.7 min | mixed, mainly semidiurnal | Mackay Outer Harbour, 8.1 km |
| Townsville, QLD | 1.70 m | 4.22 / 4.16 m | 5.8 min | mixed, mainly semidiurnal | Townsville, 3.4 km |
| Brisbane, QLD | 1.51 m | 2.78 / 2.79 m | 4.6 min | mixed, mainly semidiurnal | Brisbane Bar, 18.5 km |
| Cairns, QLD | 1.39 m | 3.57 / 3.55 m | 8.2 min | mixed, mainly semidiurnal | Cairns, 1.5 km |
| Gold Coast, QLD | 1.07 m | 2.03 / 2.05 m | 7.7 min | mixed, mainly semidiurnal | Gold Coast Seaway, 4.0 km |
When a tide table is not the right tool
A tide prediction is astronomy, and the water is weather as well. Wind and pressure move the real level against the predicted one, and in a cyclone the storm tide can stand a metre or more above it. Our numbers are also the gauge's water, not the water up a river or a creek, where the same tide arrives later — each place page says by how much, from Queensland's own tables. For navigation, the reference is the Queensland Tide Tables.
Sources. Mean sea level, tidal planes and highest astronomical tide: Maritime Safety Queensland, Department of Transport and Main Roads, Queensland Tide Tables, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Australia. The Department of Transport and Main Roads gives no warranty of any kind whether express, implied, statutory or otherwise in respect to the availability, accuracy, currency, completeness, quality or reliability of the information or that the information will be fit for any particular purpose or will not infringe any third party Intellectual Property rights. The Department of Transport and Main Roads liability for any loss, damage, cost or expense resulting from use of, or reliance on, the information is entirely excluded.
Comparison predictions: tidal prediction tables © Commonwealth of Australia, Bureau of Meteorology, as published in the Queensland Tide Tables. This product is based on Bureau of Meteorology information that has subsequently been modified. The Bureau does not necessarily support or endorse, or have any connection with, the product. In respect of that part of the information which is sourced from the Bureau, and to the maximum extent permitted by law: (i) The Bureau makes no representation and gives no warranty of any kind whether express, implied, statutory or otherwise in respect to the availability, accuracy, currency, completeness, quality, reliability or suitability of the information or that the information will be fit for any particular purpose or will not infringe any third party Intellectual Property rights; and (ii) the Bureau’s liability for any loss, damage, cost or expense resulting from use of, or reliance on, the information is entirely excluded.