25 Nearshore and Estuarine Research: Dynamics and Future Resiliency in the Coastal Zone II

This session focuses on drivers of change in coastal environments as well as planning for future resiliency in tidal marshes, mudflats, estuaries, and barrier systems, including human activity impacts, sea level rise, & changing sediment supply.

Monday, 23 March 2026
1:30 PM - 5:30 PM
CCC, Room 22/23

Morphosedimentary Stability of an Estuarine Spit Terminus (Kinburn Peninsula, Ukraine): From Antique Maps to War-Time Imagery

Paper number: 25-5
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 2:55 PM – 3:15 PM

Authors

Abstract

Baymouth barriers exhibit a wide spectrum of morphodynamic states, responding to marine (waves, tides) and terrestrial (river flow) forcings. In non-tidal settings, wind patterns play a greater role in setting up sediment transport along both shorelines, as well as aeolian processes.This study focuses on Kinburn Spit, a narrow promontory that extends north-westward from the Kinburn Peninsula at the mouth of a large estuary (Dnieper-Bug Gulf, northern Black Sea, Ukraine). The proximal cuspate segment of this barrier tapers from 1.2 km to 0.1 km for a distance of 5.5 km. The 80-150-m-wide distal part extends for another 1.7 km, producing a flying spit morphology. This accumulation form is described from the Greek antiquity, and has been the site of archaeological significance, from shipwrecks (4th-3rd centuries BCE) to military fortifications active during periods of maritime battles. In recent years, national nature reserve has been dramatically affected by military operations and temporary occupation. In addition to surface disturbance by machinery and wildfires, the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam on the lower Dnieper River in 2023, impacted parts of the baymouth delta, with massive technogenic outflow through the mouth of the estuary. Analyses of antique and historical maps (16-19th centuries CE), aerial photography and coastal charts (20th century), and satellite imagery (1980s-present) of the Kinburn Spit indicate a great degree of stability in its position and morphology, whereas its dynamic 250-m-long terminus (spur) and sandbank extension show some re-orientation. Image-color intensity analysis aids in assessing relative distribution of subaerial sections (e.g., exposed vs. vegetated sections, beach/dune ridges vs. swales), as well as in generating bathymetric profiles and quantifying areas of nearshore features (e.g., sandbars, seagrass beds). This study demonstrates that despite ongoing military impact and potential challenges with geological research following the war (e.g., due to access and mine fields), analysis of historical documents and utilization of remotely operated platforms will offer continuity of time-series analysis of coastal morphodynamics.

 

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 58, No. 2

doi: 10.1130/abs/2026NE-411104

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