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The Jurassic Coast is a World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site

A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site that is on the list maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 Sovereign state which are elected by their General Assembly for a four-year term....
 on the English Channel
English Channel

The English Channel is an Arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest, to only in the Strait of Dover....
 coast of southern England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
. The site stretches from Orcombe Point
Orcombe Point

Orcombe Point is a coastal feature near Exmouth, Devon, Devon, England. Here, the western end of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site is marked by the "Geoneedle", which was unveiled by Charles, Prince of Wales, in 2002, at the inauguration of the World Heritage Site....
 near Exmouth
Exmouth, Devon

'Exmouth' is a harbor town and seaside resort in Devon, England, at the east side of the mouth of the River Exe. It has a population of 32,972 ....
 in East Devon
Devon

Devon is a large Counties of England in South West England. The county is also referred to as Devonshire, but that is an entirely unofficial name, rarely used inside of the county but often indicating a shire....
 to Old Harry Rocks
Old Harry Rocks

Old Harrys Rocks are made from chalk, formed by cockels and are located directly east of Studland and to the north of Swanage in Dorset. Nearby and to the north are the larger towns of Poole and Bournemouth....
 near Swanage
Swanage

Swanage is a small coastal town in the south east of Dorset, England. It is situated at the eastern end of the Isle of Purbeck, approximately 10 kilometre south of Poole and 40 km east of Dorchester, Dorset....
 in East Dorset
Dorset

Dorset , is a Counties of England in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester, Dorset, situated in the south of the county at ....
, a distance of . Chartered in 2001, the Jurassic coast was the second wholly-natural World Heritage Site to be designated in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
. Its entire length can be walked on the South West Coast Path
South West Coast Path

The South West Coast Path is Britain's longest waymarked Long-distance footpaths in the UK and a National Trails . It stretches for , running from Minehead in Somerset, along the coasts of Devon and Cornwall, to Poole Harbour in Dorset....
.

Jurassic Coast consists of Triassic
Triassic

The Triassic is a geologic period that extends from about 251 to 199 annum . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic....
, Jurassic
Jurassic

The Jurassic is a geologic period that extends from about annum to  Ma, that is, from the end of the Triassic to the beginning of the Cretaceous....
 and Cretaceous
Cretaceous

The Cretaceous , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide, is a geologic period from circa to million years ago . In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows on the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period....
 cliffs, spanning the Mesozoic
Mesozoic

The Mesozoic Era is one of three Geologic time scale of the Phanerozoic eon . The division of time into eras dates back to Giovanni Arduino, in the 18th century, although his original name for the era now called the 'Mesozoic' was 'Secondary' ....
 Era, documenting 180 million years of geological
Geology

Geology is the science and study of the solid and liquid matter that constitute the Earth. The field of geology encompasses the study of the composition, structural geology, physical properties, dynamics, and History of the Earth of Earth materials, and the processes by which they are formed, moved, and changed....
 history. The site contains a number of unique geological features and shows excellent examples of different landforms, including the natural arch
Natural arch

A natural arch or natural bridge is a natural formation where a Rock arch forms, with a natural passageway through underneath. Most natural arches form as a narrow ridge, walled by cliffs, become narrower from erosion, with a softer rock stratum under the cliff-forming stratum gradually eroding out until the rock shelters thus forme...
 at Durdle Door
Durdle Door

Durdle Door is a natural limestone natural arch on the Jurassic Coast near West Lulworth in Dorset, England....
, the cove
Cove

A cove is a circular or oval coastal inlet with a narrow entrance. Colloquially, the term can be used to describe a sheltered headlands and bays....
 and limestone folding
Fold (geology)

The term fold is used in geology when one or a stack of originally flat and planar surfaces, such as sedimentary Stratum, are bent or curved as a result of plastic deformation....
 at Lulworth Cove
Lulworth Cove

Lulworth Cove is a cove near the village of West Lulworth, on the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site in Dorset, southern England. The cove is one of the finest examples of such a landform in the world, and is a tourist location, with over 1 million visitors a year....
 and an island, the Isle of Portland
Isle of Portland

The Isle of Portland is a limestone tied island, long by wide, in the English Channel. Portland is south of the resort of Weymouth, Dorset, forming the southernmost point of the county of Dorset, England....
.






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The Jurassic Coast is a World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site

A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site that is on the list maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 Sovereign state which are elected by their General Assembly for a four-year term....
 on the English Channel
English Channel

The English Channel is an Arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest, to only in the Strait of Dover....
 coast of southern England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
. The site stretches from Orcombe Point
Orcombe Point

Orcombe Point is a coastal feature near Exmouth, Devon, Devon, England. Here, the western end of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site is marked by the "Geoneedle", which was unveiled by Charles, Prince of Wales, in 2002, at the inauguration of the World Heritage Site....
 near Exmouth
Exmouth, Devon

'Exmouth' is a harbor town and seaside resort in Devon, England, at the east side of the mouth of the River Exe. It has a population of 32,972 ....
 in East Devon
Devon

Devon is a large Counties of England in South West England. The county is also referred to as Devonshire, but that is an entirely unofficial name, rarely used inside of the county but often indicating a shire....
 to Old Harry Rocks
Old Harry Rocks

Old Harrys Rocks are made from chalk, formed by cockels and are located directly east of Studland and to the north of Swanage in Dorset. Nearby and to the north are the larger towns of Poole and Bournemouth....
 near Swanage
Swanage

Swanage is a small coastal town in the south east of Dorset, England. It is situated at the eastern end of the Isle of Purbeck, approximately 10 kilometre south of Poole and 40 km east of Dorchester, Dorset....
 in East Dorset
Dorset

Dorset , is a Counties of England in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester, Dorset, situated in the south of the county at ....
, a distance of . Chartered in 2001, the Jurassic coast was the second wholly-natural World Heritage Site to be designated in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
. Its entire length can be walked on the South West Coast Path
South West Coast Path

The South West Coast Path is Britain's longest waymarked Long-distance footpaths in the UK and a National Trails . It stretches for , running from Minehead in Somerset, along the coasts of Devon and Cornwall, to Poole Harbour in Dorset....
.

Geology

Gbdot Jurassic Coast
The Jurassic Coast consists of Triassic
Triassic

The Triassic is a geologic period that extends from about 251 to 199 annum . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic....
, Jurassic
Jurassic

The Jurassic is a geologic period that extends from about annum to  Ma, that is, from the end of the Triassic to the beginning of the Cretaceous....
 and Cretaceous
Cretaceous

The Cretaceous , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide, is a geologic period from circa to million years ago . In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows on the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period....
 cliffs, spanning the Mesozoic
Mesozoic

The Mesozoic Era is one of three Geologic time scale of the Phanerozoic eon . The division of time into eras dates back to Giovanni Arduino, in the 18th century, although his original name for the era now called the 'Mesozoic' was 'Secondary' ....
 Era, documenting 180 million years of geological
Geology

Geology is the science and study of the solid and liquid matter that constitute the Earth. The field of geology encompasses the study of the composition, structural geology, physical properties, dynamics, and History of the Earth of Earth materials, and the processes by which they are formed, moved, and changed....
 history. The site contains a number of unique geological features and shows excellent examples of different landforms, including the natural arch
Natural arch

A natural arch or natural bridge is a natural formation where a Rock arch forms, with a natural passageway through underneath. Most natural arches form as a narrow ridge, walled by cliffs, become narrower from erosion, with a softer rock stratum under the cliff-forming stratum gradually eroding out until the rock shelters thus forme...
 at Durdle Door
Durdle Door

Durdle Door is a natural limestone natural arch on the Jurassic Coast near West Lulworth in Dorset, England....
, the cove
Cove

A cove is a circular or oval coastal inlet with a narrow entrance. Colloquially, the term can be used to describe a sheltered headlands and bays....
 and limestone folding
Fold (geology)

The term fold is used in geology when one or a stack of originally flat and planar surfaces, such as sedimentary Stratum, are bent or curved as a result of plastic deformation....
 at Lulworth Cove
Lulworth Cove

Lulworth Cove is a cove near the village of West Lulworth, on the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site in Dorset, southern England. The cove is one of the finest examples of such a landform in the world, and is a tourist location, with over 1 million visitors a year....
 and an island, the Isle of Portland
Isle of Portland

The Isle of Portland is a limestone tied island, long by wide, in the English Channel. Portland is south of the resort of Weymouth, Dorset, forming the southernmost point of the county of Dorset, England....
. Chesil Beach
Chesil Beach

Chesil Beach, sometimes called Chesil Bank, in Dorset, southern England. is one of three major Shingle beach in Britain, often identified as a tombolo, although research into the geomorphology of the area has revealed that it is in fact a Shoal which has "rolled" landwards, joining the mainland with Portland Bill, giving the appearance...
 is a fine example of both a tombolo
Tombolo

A tombolo or sometimes ayre is a deposition landform in which an island is attached to the mainland by a narrow piece of land such as a spit or bar ....
 and a storm beach
Storm beach

A storm beach is a beach affected by particularly fierce waves, usually with a very long Fetch . The resultant landform is often a very steep beach composed of rounded cobbles, shingle beach and occasionally sand....
. The site has stretches of both concordant
Concordant coastline

A concordant coastline occurs where the bands of differing Rock types run parallel to the coast. The outer hard rock provides a protective barrier to erosion of the softer rocks further inland....
 and discordant
Discordant coastline

A discordant coastline occurs where bands of differing Rock type run perpendicular to the coast.The differing resistance to erosion leads to the formation of headlands and bays....
 coastlines. Due to the quality of the varied geology, the site is the subject of international field studies
Field study

A field study is a term used by natural history for the scientific method study of free-living wild animals in which the subjects are observation in their natural habitat, without changing, harming, or materially altering the setting or behavior of the animals under study....
. This area was home to Mary Anning
Mary Anning

Mary Anning was an early British fossil collector and paleontology....
, a palaeontologist who studied the fossils of the coastline around Lyme Regis and discovered the first complete Ichthyosaur
Ichthyosaur

Ichthyosaurs were giant marine reptiles that resembled fish and dolphins. Ichthyosaurs thrived during much of the Mesozoic era; based on fossil evidence, they first appeared approximately 245 million years ago and disappeared about 90 million years ago, about 25 million years before the dinosaurs became extinct....
 fossil. The highest point on the Jurassic Coast, and the entire south coast of England, is Golden Cap
Golden Cap

Golden Cap is a hill and cliff situated between Bridport and Charmouth in Dorset, England. The cliffs are the highest point on the south coast of Great Britain....
 at .

History

Landslip Near Lyme
The site was featured on the television programme Seven Natural Wonders
Seven Natural Wonders

Seven Natural Wonders was a television series that aired on BBC Two from 3 May to 20 June 2005. The programme took a specific area of England each week and, from votes by the people living in that area, showed the 'seven natural wonders' of that area in a programme, although it is questionable how 'natural' some of the wonders were....
 as one of the wonders of the South West (of the UK), and in a 2005 poll
Opinion poll

An opinion poll is a statistical survey of public opinion from a particular sampling . Opinion polls are usually designed to represent the opinions of a population by conducting a series of questions and then extrapolating generalities in ratio or within confidence intervals....
 of Radio Times
Radio Times

Radio Times is the BBC's weekly television and radio programme listings magazine. It also provides on-line listings....
 readers, the Jurassic Coast was named as the 5th greatest natural wonder in Britain.

During World War II
World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a Participants in World War II, including all of the great powers, organised into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War II and the Axis powers....
 several sections of the Jurassic Coast became property of the then Ministry of War
Ministry of War

A Ministry of War or Ministry for War is an administrative, supply and services agency of an army, as opposed to the entire military establishment....
. One of the Royal Navy
Royal Navy

The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British Armed Forces . From the mid-18th century until well into the 20th century, it was the most powerful navy in the world, playing a key part in establishing the British Empire as the dominant world power from 1815 until the early 1940s....
's largest bases was at Portland Harbour
Portland Harbour

Portland Harbour is located beside the Isle of Portland, off Dorset, on the south coast of England. It is one of the largest man-made harbours in the world....
, though it has since closed. A major army base at Bovington remains in use today, and large areas of land, including the coast between Lulworth Cove
Lulworth Cove

Lulworth Cove is a cove near the village of West Lulworth, on the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site in Dorset, southern England. The cove is one of the finest examples of such a landform in the world, and is a tourist location, with over 1 million visitors a year....
 and Kimmeridge
Kimmeridge

Kimmeridge is a small village in the Purbeck district of Dorset, England, situated on the English Channel coast. The village has a population of 110 ....
, including Tyneham
Tyneham

Tyneham is a ghost town in south Dorset, England, near Lulworth on the Isle of Purbeck. It remains a civil parish. The village is situated near Worbarrow Bay on the Jurassic Coast, and there have been fishing communities associated with the parish since the Iron Age....
 ghost village, are still only partially accessible. Areas of the coast near Exmouth, The Fleet at Weymouth and the beaches at Studland
Studland

Studland is a small village on the Isle of Purbeck in the England county of Dorset. It is famous for its beaches and National Nature Reserve. In 2001 Studland had a population of 480, the lowest in 50 years....
 were also used for training during the war, but have since been returned to civilian use.

Parts of the coast, especially around Portland, can be very dangerous, and frequent shipwrecks have been a feature of the coast throughout recorded history. In January 2007 the coast experienced its most environmentally damaging wreck when the MSC Napoli
MSC Napoli

MSC Napoli was a United Kingdom-flagged container ship that was deliberately broken up by salvors after she ran into difficulty in the English Channel on 18 January 2007....
, a 2,400 capacity container ship, was beached at Branscombe
Branscombe

Branscombe ? The Old Bakery, Manor Mill & Forge is a collection of buildings in Branscombe, Devon, Seaton, Devon, Devon, England. The property has been in the ownership of the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty since 1965....
 near Sidmouth
Sidmouth

Sidmouth is a small town on the English Channel coast in Devon, South West England England. The town lies at the mouth of the River Sid in the East Devon district, approximately south east of Exeter....
, losing oil and cargo.

On May 6 2008, a section of the coast was destroyed after a landslip that was described as the worst in 100 years.

Gateway towns

Durdle Door Dorsit England
West Bay
West Bay (England)

West Bay, formerly known as Bridport Harbour, is situated approximately two miles from the centre of Bridport on the Jurassic Coast in Dorset, England....
 forms a major gateway to the Jurassic Coast with the completion in 2004 of the Jurassic Pier. Weymouth is also a major gateway town, near the centre of the world heritage site. A World Heritage Coast Centre is to be built in the town by 2011. Other gateway towns include:
  • Abbotsbury
    Abbotsbury

    Abbotsbury is a large village and civil parish in the West Dorset district of Dorset, England; situated north-west of Weymouth, Dorset. The local travel links are located from the village to Upwey railway station and to Bournemouth International Airport....
  • Bridport
    Bridport

    Bridport is a town in Dorset, England. Located near the coast at the Western end of Chesil Beach at the confluence of the rivers Brit River and Asker River, it originally thrived as a fishing port and rope-making centre ....
  • Budleigh Salterton
    Budleigh Salterton

    Budleigh Salterton is a small town on the south coast of Devon, England approximately 15 miles south of Exeter. It is situated within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty designated East Devon AONB....
  • Charmouth
    Charmouth

    Charmouth is a village at the mouth of the River Char in West Dorset, England. The village has a population of 1,687 according to the 2001 census....
     — Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre
    Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre

    Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre is based in the upstairs floor of a long-disused cement factory on the foreshore of Charmouth in Dorset, England....
  • Exmouth
    Exmouth, Devon

    'Exmouth' is a harbor town and seaside resort in Devon, England, at the east side of the mouth of the River Exe. It has a population of 32,972 ....
  • Lulworth
    Lulworth

    Lulworth is a place in Dorset, South England famous for its castle and cove.See:*East Lulworth *Lulworth Castle*Lulworth Cove*Lulworth Estate...
  • Lyme Regis
    Lyme Regis

    Lyme Regis is a coastal town in West Dorset, England, situated 25 miles west of Dorchester, Dorset and east of Exeter. The town lies in Lyme Bay, on the English Channel coast at the Dorset-Devon border....
  • Seaton
    Seaton, Devon

    Seaton is a seaside town in East Devon on the south coast of England.The town faces onto Lyme Bay, to the west of the mouth of the River Axe, Devon with red cliffs to one side and white cliffs on the other....
  • Sidmouth
    Sidmouth

    Sidmouth is a small town on the English Channel coast in Devon, South West England England. The town lies at the mouth of the River Sid in the East Devon district, approximately south east of Exeter....
  • Swanage
    Swanage

    Swanage is a small coastal town in the south east of Dorset, England. It is situated at the eastern end of the Isle of Purbeck, approximately 10 kilometre south of Poole and 40 km east of Dorchester, Dorset....


See also

  • Mary Anning
    Mary Anning

    Mary Anning was an early British fossil collector and paleontology....
  • Geology of the United Kingdom
  • Geology of Dorset
    Geology of Dorset

    Dorset, England, rests on a variety of different rock types which give the county its interesting landscapes and habitat . Dorset is particularly noted for its coastline, the Jurassic Coast, which in 2001 was designated a World Heritage Site because of the variety of landforms and fossils exhibited along the coast....
  • UK coastline
    UK coastline

    The coastline of the United Kingdom is remarkable for a number of reasons. The first of these is that it is long in comparison to the coastline of similar sized countries; it is also accessible and very varied in geography and habitats....
  • List of Dorset beaches
    List of Dorset beaches

    There are many beaches in Dorset, southern England, with most of them making up the UNESCO World Heritage Site, The Jurassic Coast. Here is a list of most of them, from west to east:...
  • List of fossil sites
    List of fossil sites

    This is a worldwide list of important and/or well-known localities where fossils have been found. Such locations may either be a geological formation or a single site....


External links

  • , UNESCO
    UNESCO

    United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on 16 November 1945....
  • , BBC
  • by Ian West, Southampton University


Artwork



Photographs

  • pool at Flickr
    Flickr

    Flickr is an and video hosting service website, web services suite, and online community platform. In addition to being a popular Web site for users to share personal photographs, the service is widely used by bloggers as a photo repository....
  • gallery at Cotch.net