An Overview of Shoreline Mapping by Using Airborne LiDAR

Since the shorelines are important geographical boundaries, monitoring shoreline change plays an important role in integrated coastal management. With the evolution of remote sensing technology, many studies have used optical images to measure and to extract shoreline. However, some factors limit the use of optical imaging on shoreline mapping. Considering that the airborne LiDAR data can provide more accurate topographical information, there are some studies that have been investigated using airborne LiDAR to map shorelines. However, a literature review that combines airborne LiDAR with shoreline measurement and extracting methods has not yet been conducted. The motivation of this paper is to present a narrative review of shoreline mapping by using airborne LiDAR, including a laser scanning system, data availability, and current extraction techniques over the past two decades. Therefore, we conducted a broad search and finally summarized more than 130 articles on airborne LiDAR technology for shoreline measurement and shoreline extraction. We find that shoreline mapping by using airborne LiDAR still meets the challenge, such as objective condition limitations, data availability limitations, and self-characteristic limitations. The current method of shoreline extraction has a great potential to be improved; particularly when combined with the emerging current state-of-the-art LiDAR point cloud processing techniques (e.g., deep-learning algorithms), they will have a brighter future. This review paper provides an overview and the current trend of shoreline mapping using airborne LiDAR, and points out the limitations, challenges, and future opportunities. Moreover, it also can serve as a starting point for novices and experts to study the shoreline mapping by using airborne LiDAR, which provides a scientific support for studying shoreline changes.

Automated summary

This paper provides a narrative review of shoreline mapping using airborne LiDAR over the past two decades. More than 130 articles were summarized to assess the current state and challenges of this method. It was found that while there are limitations and challenges, the combination of LiDAR point cloud processing techniques, such as deep-learning algorithms, shows promise for improving shoreline extraction and mapping.