Monitoring the change of the coastline of the Yellow River delta by integrating remote sensing (RS) and GIS

Abstract：The Yellow River is the second longest river in China and famous for its suspended riverbed, frequent diversion and huge amount of sediments. Coastline's movement is one of the major environmental geological problems in the Yellow River delta area. The authors analyzed the MSS and TM image data over 28 years (1976 to 2004) from the Diaokou, Huanghegang and Hekou reaches by using the integrated RS and GIS technique and found the general trend of coastline evolution after 1976's artificial diversion of the river, i.e.: continuous erosing and recessing of the Diaokou reach in the north, relative stability of the Huanghegang (Yellow River Harbor) reach in the northeast and continuous silting and advancing of the Hekou (river mouth) reach in the south. These findings may guide the resource development and environmental protection in the Yellow River Delta.