The shoreline is thought to be a natural scenery with which everyone is familiar. It is the gift of beautiful and spectacular nature, as well as the location of people's emotions.

Looking at the coast's twists and turns, the rushing saltwater is continually striking the reefs along the sea, and the waves are bathed in golden rays of light. However, the shoreline is not as easy as we believe. Do you know why they're called coastlines? Is that the zigzag line on the beach?

What good is a coastline? What can it bring to us human beings? Let's take a look at it together.

The coastline is the dividing line between the sea and the land and is more precisely defined as the line connecting the extreme position of the seawater to the land.

It changes with the ebb and flow of the tide. Due to the influence of tides and storm surges, the seawater rises and falls, and the sea level rises and falls.

The line separating the water and the land is continually shifting. As a result, rather than a geographically defined line, the real coastline should be a collection of innumerable sea-land dividing lines between high and low tides, forming a band in space.

Factor 1: Crustal movement

Crustal movement is one of the causes of coastline change. When the Earth's crust rises, the continental plates expand and the water recedes.

As the Earth's crust falls, the ocean plates expand, causing changes in coastlines. Changes in shorelines due to crustal movements still exist today. The rise and fall of the Earth's crust cause the oceans to change, and so the coastlines to change dramatically.

Factor 2: Climate change

As we all know, when temperatures rise, glaciers at the poles will melt, and rising seas will cause coastlines to invade the land. Throughout history, there have been many coastline changes due to climate change.

Today, the Earth's sea level is rising again, largely because of emissions of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, which affect climate change.

Factor 3: Sediment accumulation

Coastal sediment accumulation can also affect the change of the coastline. In particular, the amount of sediment trapped in the river directly affects the speed of the coastline.

The river carries the sediment to the bank of the river, eventually forming a large sediment bank.

What are the consequences of coastal changes for humans? This is quite likely the most perplexing question. The influence of shoreline changes on humans is both slow and massive. The right expansion of the coastline promotes the establishment of certain outstanding harbors, particularly the growth of the marine industry, which is critical for the development of nations that rely on overseas commerce.

At the same time, the water is eroding towards the land, increasing the humidity and precipitation. Overdevelopment of the shoreline, on the other hand, maybe disastrous for humans. On the one hand, changes in the shoreline will alter the biological world's living structure (including people), causing human migration. The shift in shoreline, on the other hand, will definitely result in direct human deaths and property losses.