钱江涌潮

The Tidal Bore of the Qiantang River

浙江钱塘江河口的涌潮，自古国蔚为天下奇观。它是大自然赋予的神奇景象。由于天体引力和地球离心作用，每逢农历初一至初五，十五至三十，天体引潮力特别强，易形成大潮；农历八月十八日的大潮尤为壮观。而杭州湾喇叭口的地形特殊，海湾水域广阔，但河口狭窄，加之河床泥沙阻挡，易使潮流能量集中，江潮迅速猛涨，流速加快，涌潮现象频频发生。钱江涌潮，一年四季，周而复始。

The tidal bore located at the mouth of the Qiantang River in Zhejiang affords a magnificent view and constitutes a remark- able natural phenomenon. The bore is at its highest from the first day to the fifth, and from the fifteenth day to the twentieth every month according to the lunar calendar. At this time, the moon and the sun exert the greatest pull on the ocean at the mouth of the Qiantang River. The bore is at its most spectacular every September on the eighteenth day of the lunar calendar＇ s eighth month. The river＇s special physical features account for this remarkable natural phenomenon. Its outlet to the ocean, Hangzhou Bay, is extremely wide, shaped like a large trumpet. When the sea tide rises, it brings with it a huge amount of water, pushing inland at a great speed.