Shoreline Change Analysis Along the Rabigh Coast of Saudi Arabia, Using Multi-Temporal Satellite Imagery

Abstract

There is a lack of understanding about the impact of coastal activities on the modifications to the Red Sea shoreline of Saudi Arabia. The present work makes use of multi-temporal satellite data and the Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS) application to investigate changes in the location of the shoreline along the Rabigh coastal area over the period of 1986–2019. For an evaluation of trends in the short and long term, the End Point Rate (EPR) and the Linear Regression Rate (LRR) were employed to determine the rates at which shoreline alterations occurred. According to the LRR technique, the maximum erosion and maximum accretion were –23.22 and 18.8 myr-1, respectively, while according to the EPR technique, the maximum erosion and accretion rates were –47.30 and 40.90 myr-1, respectively.