The normal = shoreline tag is employed to draw the mean high water springs range along side shoreline within edge of the sea.
In which is the shoreline?
Basically that’s the highest line water achieves in regular situations. (notice images on the right for many tactics how exactly to decide in which that range is actually.)
Around Antarctica in which you will find ice shelving the coast is mapped at the « calving line », that is the line where the available liquids satisfies the permanent ice shelving. Read Antarctica/Tagging for information.
Mean low water springs could be the position regarding the lowest wave. You will find presently no conformed means of marking this range in OSM. The region between mean low water springs and OSM coastline is tagged according whatever soilA : for advice sand (see natural = mud or normal = shoal ), rocks (read all-natural = bare_rock or all-natural = stone ), muddy (see wetland = tidalflat or normal = mud ).
How to go into the information
Marking the shoreline is a bit different than with other features in OSM and you should be cautious to have this appropriate. Always need natural=coastline on methods, not nodes or connections.
For smaller countries a single enclosed method could be drawn all over perimeter of an isle, looping straight back on it self. For large landmasses the shoreline means several linear means connected end-to-end. These methods must generate a continuing interlinked coast, the conclusion node of one method should be the start node of subsequent method. A rest into the coastline or other mistake may cause severe difficulties when utilizing this information. If you aren’t confident about modifying, it is advisable to not render biggest adjustment beyond changing nodes to align better with aerial images.
The path the methods were driven is extremely important! They must getting pulled to ensure the land is found on the remaining area and drinking water in the right-side of this ways (whenever monitoring in the direction of just how arrows). Should you decide view this as tracing around an area of land, e.g., an island, then your coast means must run counterclockwise.
Tiny islands
Never incorporate other principles of organic =* using semi-colon value separators, as it’s not really necessary. (furthermore not identified by most data consumers and renderers, however it is maybe not sufficient explanation to take into account it as an awful idea by itself). A good example might possibly be organic = coastline;bare_rock for islets, that should getting symbolized as normal = coast as a member of a multipolygon regards tagged with normal = bare_rock .
Example
- tactics marked organic = coastlineexample
- relationship with natural = bare_rocktype = multipolygon – and e =* + room = isletexample
- natural = coastline method might be in this connection with outerrole.
Validation
The validator in JOSM can check out the shoreline for substance. Use it if you are using JOSM. Normally use the OSM Inspector coastline view at to check on for mistakes.
Coastlines frequently coincide together with other attributes, for example lake lips, landuse and limitations. You can easily separate the coast in as many pieces since you need to, just be sure there’s always a continuing range.
What about ponds?
This tag really should not be employed for freshwater ponds. Lakes is mapped as shut method or multipolygon relations with tags including natural = drinking water or landuse = reservoir .
Before multipolygon relations were added to OSM, some large lakes comprise also tagged with natural=coastline, however they all have already been switched today. The Sole waterbody without stage link with the seas that’s employing this tag could be the A Caspian Water . No one should utilize this tag regarding various other inland liquid segments.
Lake mouths
Lake means marked as waterway = lake or waterway = supply end during the coastline on a common node for your river ways as well as the coastline ways. Bigger canals marked with waterway = riverbank or all-natural = liquids and drinking water = river have actually a way across their throat that’s tagged natural = coastline . When it comes to those cases the river line may expand on the reverse side of this coast, eg if there is a dug deepwater channel or a marked transport lane.
Discover discussions about where in actuality the transition amongst the sea to an extensive lake (marked with waterway = riverbank ) should happen; you will find a view that this should if at all possible feel on top of the tidal section regarding the lake, but it is also approved the junction can be closer to the mouth area from the river because of the tidal part of the river marked with tidal = yes . The biggest thing is to ensure that the shoreline and riverbank show at the least two surrounding nodes to create a seamless junction within river additionally the ocean. You will find a proposal outlining top minimizing limitations with the placement of this junction and there’s another proposition describing tagging of tidal streams.
Bays alongside large tidal salt-water areas are part of the sea when they attached to the water and should continually be tagged as such.
Information resources
The shoreline facts for most countries got at first created from a low-resolution facts using the PGS significance also imports. Inaccurate shorelines can be seen mostly in a sawtooth form, whereas the truth is the coastlines are typically gentle figure. A number of countries the coast means need later started improved either with tracing from aerial imagery, or changed by best vector facts.
Be careful whenever tracing coastlines from aerial images. Those graphics in many cases are not quite for the best situation, so your coast might seem like it suits perfectly to your imagery, however in fact it really is a few hundred m off. Be sure that the information fits to GPS information.
(which include formal high water and low-water facts for all the UK).
Errors and persistence checking
It is very important that coast is created and tagged properly. An individual mistake when you look at the coastline somewhere in Africa might indicate all of Asia-Africa-Europe landmass can not be attracted correctly! Always be certain the coast contains the best direction (land to the left, drinking water on the right). Try not to cross a coastline over alone – it’s no definition and e aim twice (pinch aim) other than the start/end point (if proper). When you need to create an island, begin an alternative way.
Some other seaside services
Along side shore it is usually useful to add organic = seashore , organic = bare_rock and organic = cliff for shores, revealed bedrock and high cliffs; additionally normal = wetland for many different forms of wetland, including wetland = tidalflat , wetland = mangrove and wetland = saltmarsh . man_made = groyne can be
used for sea defenses.For remote areas of unconsolidated products during the ocean which are partialy uncovered at lowest wave, read all-natural = shoal .
Using OSM shoreline facts