DC2 MHWS 1970s: UK Mean High Water Spring Shoreline Data from 1956-1995

Mean High Water Spring data digitized from Ordnance Survey National Grid sheets at 1:10,560/1:10,000 scale. The dataset covers soft or erodible shorelines across the UK and represents an epoch from 1956 to 1995. It was created by the Government Digital Service as part of the National Coastal Change Assessment and updated in 2021 during the second phase of Dynamic Coast research.

Use Cases

• Modeling historical shoreline change based on the defined 1956-1995 epoch.
• Assessing coastal erosion risk for soft shorelines as specified in the dataset extent.
• Calibrating tidal or coastal models using the Mean High Water Spring baseline.
• Conducting longitudinal studies of coastal morphology using the multi-decade time range.

Strengths

• Data is derived from authoritative Ordnance Survey mapping at 1:10,560/1:10,000 scale.
• Covers a defined 39-year epoch from 1956 to 1995.
• Updated in 2021 as part of a second research phase, suggesting ongoing curation.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and file size are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect geographic bias inherent to the UK-focused eu_open_data source.

Provenance

Source

Government Digital Service, via the National Coastal Change Assessment (Dynamic Coast).

Collection Method

Digitized from Ordnance Survey National Grid 1:10,560/1:10,000 sheets.

Time Range

Epoch 1956 to 1995.

Freshness

Updated in 2021, but a specific last update date is unknown.

Geography

United Kingdom, specifically soft or erodible shorelines.