This pioneering intra-wave sand transport model calculates sand transport due to the combined effect of waves and currents by using the integrated wave boundary layer approach. This means that the bed shear stress (responsible for entraining sediment) and the intra-wave orbital motion (responsible for moving entrained sediment) can be determined for any combination of currents and waves. Add to this a coupling to a vertical diffusion and advection formulation of sediment concentration taking sediment characteristics into account, you have a model that can also be applied to any type of non-cohesive sediment.

Make long-term prediction of shoreline evolution ranging from days to centuries in cases where 2D effects are important, such as areas with complex bathymetries. With MIKE 21 SM, the sediment volume deposited during each time step is integrated across the shore face. The morphology is then updated according to the continuity equation for the shoreline using a predefined coastal profile. This unique process eliminates the effect of the cross-shore transport on the morphology, enabling long-term simulations.

The Dune Erosion model can be used to calculate the erosion of the dunes during storm conditions. Model the effects from dune erosion on shoreline evolution, even if the shoreline has not eroded all the way back. The Dune Erosion model is coupled to the shoreline evolution i.e. sand eroded from the dune will supply the beach and thereby reduce exposure of the dune to erosion.

Sediment availability on the seabed can be introduced through initial maps of sand layer thickness, which is updated in response to morphological changes. Sand layer thickness maps are used for detailed sediment bypass over underwater structures, sloping seawalls, reefs and other hard bottom features. The sand layer thickness is part of the standard MIKE 21 ST FM but can also be applied within areas controlled by the Shoreline model.

The implementation of the restrictions to morphology imposed by the shoreline model allows flexibility to specify areas where shoreline morphology is required and other areas where the full 2D morphology is required. Thus for some areas where the assumption on straight and parallel depth contours cannot be justified, the normal 2D model can be used within the same model setup. This feature has proven to increase the applicability of the shoreline model to virtually any long-term morphological study involving coastal structures. Typical examples where the 2D feature will be enabled is locally around the tip of relatively short groynes where the bathymetry is known to be both dynamic and spatially highly variable.

Use MIKE 21 SM on systems with multiple cores and GPUs thanks to the efficient parallelisation techniques that are implemented in MIKE 21. Benefit from enhanced calculation speed during morphological modelling due to special techniques that have been developed for this software.

The software features an efficient Mesh Generator Tool to support the generation and handling of unstructured meshes including the definition and editing of boundaries.