Earth—Moon tidal evolution: model results and observational evidence

There are five datasets which can be used to verify models of the Earth-Moon tidal evolution. Those are: (1) geological evidence of the age of earth and lunar rocks; (2) paleontological and sedimentological data of growth increments in marine invertebrate fossils, stromatolite growth patterns and cyclically laminated, thin-bedded sediments; (3) astronomical data of the secular lunar orbit motion acceleration; (4) lunar laser ranging and satellite tracking data; and (5) estimates of tidal energy dissipation derived from global paleotide models. It is shown that models of the Earth-Moon tidal evolution come into conflict with one or the other dataset if they do not take into account the fluctuating effects of continental drift and their associated changes in resonance properties of the ocean on geological timescales. The simplest of all possible ways out is to parameterize the response of the ocean to the tide-generating force by a multi-mode resonance approximation with time-dependent frequencies of resonance modes and to assume that the ocean resonance lifetime is much shorter than the duration of the cycle of consolidation-disintegration of continents.