Northern Ireland Shoreline Change Rates from Historical Maps and Aerial Imagery

Historical shoreline positions for the Northern Ireland coastline, analyzed from Ordnance Survey maps and aerial imagery dating back to the early 1800s. Ulster University processed the data using the Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS) to calculate rate-of-change statistics at 25-meter intervals. The dataset includes metrics like Linear Regression Rate (LRR) and Net Shoreline Movement (NSM) to visualize coastal change.

Use Cases

• Modeling coastal erosion risk based on Linear Regression Rate (LRR) statistics.
• Identifying areas of shoreline retreat or accretion using Net Shoreline Movement (NSM) data.
• Assessing long-term coastal change dynamics from historical Ordnance Survey maps and aerial imagery.
• Visualizing shoreline change spatially using rate-of-change data collected at 25-meter transects.

Strengths

• Analysis spans a long temporal range, from the early 1800s to the present.
• Rate-of-change statistics are calculated at a high spatial resolution of 25-meter intervals.
• Data is derived from multiple historical sources, including Ordnance Survey maps and aerial imagery.
• Includes multiple statistical measures of change (e.g., LRR, NSM, SCE, EPR, 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 coastline.

Provenance

Source

Ulster University, via OpenDataNI.

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 to present.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-18 11:23:35.350417; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Northern Ireland coastline.