2008 Ortho OSNI: Historical Shoreline Change Analysis for Northern Ireland

Historical shoreline position and geometry data for the entire Northern Ireland coastline, analyzed from Ordnance Survey maps and aerial imagery dating back to the early 1800s. The dataset provides rate-of-change statistics calculated at 25-meter intervals using the Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS). The end product was provided by Ulster University and is managed by OpenDataNI.

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 dynamics using Linear Regression Rate (LRR) and Weighted Linear Regression Rate (WLR) statistics.
• Visualize historical shoreline change since the early 1800s using the provided geospatial data.

Strengths

• Analysis is based on all available Ordnance Survey maps and aerial imagery, suggesting a comprehensive source foundation.
• Rate-of-change statistics are calculated at a high spatial resolution of 25-meter intervals.
• Provides multiple statistical measures of change, including NSM, SCE, EPR, LRR, and WLR.
• Temporal coverage spans over two centuries, from the early 1800s.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and dataset size are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect geographic bias inherent to the Northern Ireland focus.

Provenance

Source

OpenDataNI, with end product provided by Ulster University.

Collection Method

Historical shoreline analysis based on Ordnance Survey maps and aerial imagery, processed using the ArcGIS Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS).

Time Range

Early 1800s onwards, with analysis over annual to decadal periods.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-18 11:23:47.120236; freshness should be verified.

Geography

The entire coastline of Northern Ireland.