Coastline of the United Kingdom

The coastline of the United Kingdom is formed by a variety of natural features including islands, bays, headlands and peninsulas. It consists of the coastline of the island of Great Britain, the north-east coast of the island of Ireland, as well as many much smaller islands. Much of the coastline is accessible and quite varied in geography and habitats. Large stretches have been designated areas of natural beauty, notably the Jurassic Coast and various stretches referred to as heritage coast. They are both very long, spreading through the mainland.

For the problem in fractal geometry, see How Long Is the Coast of Britain? Statistical Self-Similarity and Fractional Dimension.
Bedruthan Steps, North Cornwall, a spectacular section of the UK coastline, managed by the National Trust

Characteristics
Further information: List of countries by length of coastline

Length

The measurement of any coastline depends upon the scale of map used and the accuracy of the measurement. A larger map scale and smaller unit of measure will result in more detail being revealed and measured and thus a greater length.[1] And because the resultant length increases exponentially faster than the increase of scale of measurement, there is no such thing as "an approximate answer" to this question. This is referred to as the coastline paradox. A coastline is fractal-like — a fractal has self-similar properties, similar at every scale — therefore the closer the observer looks, the more detail is revealed, leading to a greater overall length.[2]

According to the CIA Factbook, the length of the UK coastline is around 12,429 km or 7,723 miles.[3] According to the World Resources Institute, the length is around 19,717 km.[4]

Shape

The United Kingdom's coastline is more broken than coastlines of many other countries. It has a fractal or Hausdorff dimension or 'wiggliness' of 1.25, which is comparatively high; the Australian coastline for example has a fractal dimension of 1.13, and that of South Africa is 1.02.[5]

As a result of this shape and the number of islands, the coastline of the UK is longer than that of similar sized countries. This means the UK has a relatively high coast/area ratio.[6]

Nowhere in the UK is more than 113 kilometres (70 mi) from the coast. It is estimated that around 3 million people (out of 60 million) live on the coast of the UK. The place furthest from the coast is Coton in the Elms in Derbyshire, which is equidistant from Fosdyke Wash in Lincolnshire; White Sands between Neston in Cheshire and Flint, Flintshire in Wales; and Westbury-on-Severn Gloucestershire.[7][8]

Features

Islands
See also: List of islands of the British Isles, List of islands of the United Kingdom, and British Isles

There are over 1,000 islands within the UK; about 130 are permanently inhabited according to the 2001 Census. Of the remaining islands, some are used for farming and are occupied occasionally, some are nature reserves with restricted access and some are little more than sea-swept rocks. The main occupied islands and island groups in the UK are as follows:

The Channel Islands (including Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney and Sark) and the Isle of Man are not part of the UK; they are self-governing Crown dependencies therefore their coastlines are not coastlines of the United Kingdom.

Peninsulas

Peninsulas around the UK coast include:

Bays

Bays, sea lochs (loughs) and large estuaries include:

Recreational access
Further information: List of seaside resorts in the United Kingdom and List of beaches in the United Kingdom

The coastline of the United Kingdom offers extensive recreational opportunities including seaside resorts and coastal paths:

See also

References
  1. "How Long Is Great Britain's Coastline? Well, It Depends…". Brilliant Maps. Retrieved 30 December 2020.
  2. Weisstein, Eric W. "Coastline Paradox". MathWorld. Wolfram Research. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  3. "United Kingdom". CIA World Fact Book. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  4. "Coastal and Marine Ecosystems — Marine Jurisdictions: Coastline length". World Resources Institute. Archived from the original on 19 April 2012. Retrieved 30 December 2020.
  5. Shelberg, Moellering and Lam (1982)
  6. "Coastal Guide Country File - England". EUCC - Coastal Guide. 2007. Archived from the original on 17 March 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  7. "The farm furthest from the sea". BBC. 23 July 2003. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  8. "Ordnance Survey - MapZone". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
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