Historical shoreline analysis for the entire Northern Ireland coastline, based on Ordnance Survey maps and aerial imagery from the early 1800s onward. Ulster University processed the data using the Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS) to calculate rate-of-change statistics at 25-meter intervals. The end product is a digital asset for visualizing and assessing historical shoreline change.
Use Cases
- Calculate rates of shoreline change based on Net Shoreline Movement (NSM) and End Point Rate (EPR) statistics.
- Identify areas of coastal retreat or accretion based on spatially displayed rate-of-change data.
- Model long-term coastal evolution using Linear Regression Rate (LRR) and Weighted Linear Regression Rate (WLR) statistics.
- Visualize historical shoreline positions and geometry changes over annual to decadal time periods.
Strengths
- Analysis covers the entire Northern Ireland coastline.
- Rate-of-change data was collected at 25-meter intervals.
- Derived from multiple historical sources including Ordnance Survey maps and aerial imagery.
- Provides multiple statistical measures of change (NSM, SCE, EPR, LRR, WLR).
Limitations
- Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
- Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
- Data may reflect geographic bias inherent to the Northern Ireland focus.
Provenance
- Source
- OpenDataNI
- Collection Method
- Analysis of historical Ordnance Survey maps and aerial imagery using the ArcGIS Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS).
- Time Range
- Early 1800s onward
- Freshness
- Last updated 2026-03-18 11:23:32.928308; freshness should be verified.
- Geography
- Northern Ireland coastline