Integrated Tidal Evolution Model of the Earth–Moon System

This work presents an integrated conceptual model describing the early tidal evolution of the Earth–Moon system following the lunar-forming impact. The model combines conservation of angular momentum, tidal torque scaling proportional to 1/D⁶, nonlinear tidal dissipation, atmospheric tides, climatic modulation, and tectonic influences. When the Moon is assumed to have initially formed at a distance of approximately 25–35 thousand km from Earth, tidal forces become several thousand times stronger than today. This produces kilometer-scale tidal amplitudes and extremely strong energy dissipation in the early oceans. The analysis suggests that a significant fraction of the lunar orbital expansion likely occurred during the earliest stage of the system’s evolution, followed by a long-term gradual recession toward the present orbital distance.