Beach Morphology at Banda Aceh, Indonesia in Response to the Tsunami on 26 December 2004

A study of morphological response and development of beaches which were affected by the earthquake and the tsunami on 26^th December 2004 has been conducted at two selected coastal sections of Banda Aceh, Indonesia. A simplified principle adopted from one-line shoreline theory in a geospatial analysis utilizing identified shoreline features across the foreshore zone is applied. The analysis yields a rough estimation of the shoreline and sediment volume changes since the tsunami. After the severe impact as revealed by a significant chaotic shoreline retreat, the morphological development in the following 6 months has shown that about 15% of the total sediment loss due to the tsunami on the northwest coast has further been eroded, while 60% of that on the west coast has been compensated by accretion. This leads to a conclusion that different coastal characteristics show different responses to, and developments after the tsunami.