Editing Dorset (section)

==Physical geography==
{{main|Geography of Dorset|Geology of Dorset|List of hills of Dorset|South West Hampshire/South East Dorset Green Belt}}
Dorset covers an area of {{convert|2653|km2|sqmi|0}} and contains considerable variety in its underlying geology, which is partly responsible for the diversity of landscape.<ref name="DDB 2010 p8">{{cite web |url=http://www.dorsetforyou.com/media.jsp?mediaid=154835&filetype=pdf |title=Dorset Data Book |format=PDF |page=8 |year=2010 |work=Dorset For You |publisher=[[Dorset County Council]] |access-date=7 February 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110404161736/http://www.dorsetforyou.com/media.jsp?mediaid=154835&filetype=pdf |archive-date=4 April 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Draper 136">Draper (p. 136)</ref><ref>Chaffey (p. 5)</ref> A large percentage (66%) of the county comprises either [[chalk]], [[clay]] or mixed [[sand]] and [[gravel]]s. The remainder is less straightforward and includes [[Portland stone|Portland]] and [[Purbeck Group|Purbeck stone]], other [[limestone]]s, [[calcareous clay]]s and [[shale]]s.<ref name="Draper 136/137"> Draper (pp. 136–137)</ref> Portland and Purbeck stone are of national importance as a building material and for restoring some of Britain's most famous landmarks.<ref name="Minerals Core Strategy p22">{{cite web |title=Dorset's Minerals Core Strategy |url=http://www.dorsetforyou.com/media.jsp?mediaid=156450&filetype=pdf |format=PDF |page=22 |work=Dorset For You |publisher=[[Dorset County Council]] |access-date=20 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101208203423/http://www.dorsetforyou.com/media.jsp?mediaid=156450&filetype=pdf |archive-date=8 December 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Planning for Minerals and Waste (newsletter number 8) |url=http://www.dorsetforyou.com/media.jsp?mediaid=165006&filetype=pdf |format=PDF |page=3 |work=Dorset For You |publisher=[[Dorset County Council]] |access-date=26 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929223938/http://www.dorsetforyou.com/media.jsp?mediaid=165006&filetype=pdf |archive-date=29 September 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Almost every type of rock known from the [[Early Jurassic]] to the [[Eocene]] epochs can be found in the county.<ref>Chaffey (p. 9)</ref><ref name="Geology of Britain Viewer"/>

[[File:Dorset Geology.png|thumb|left|300px|Geological map of Dorset]]
Dorset has a number of limestone ridges which are mostly covered in either arable fields or [[calcareous grassland]] supporting sheep.<ref name="Cullingford p.91">Cullingford (p. 91)</ref> These limestone areas include a wide band of [[Cretaceous]] chalk which crosses the county as a range of hills from north-east to south-west, incorporating [[Cranborne Chase]] and the [[Dorset Downs]], and a narrow band running from south-west to south-east, incorporating the [[Purbeck Hills]].<ref name="Chaffey 43">Chaffey (p. 43)</ref><ref name="Chaffey 11">Chaffey (p. 11)</ref> Between the chalk hills are large, wide [[River valley|vales]] and wide [[flood plain]]s.<ref name="Geology of Britain Viewer">{{cite web |url=http://maps.bgs.ac.uk/geologyviewer_google/googleviewer.html |title=Geology of Britain Viewer |publisher=[[British Geological Survey]] |access-date=14 February 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727004018/http://maps.bgs.ac.uk/geologyviewer_google/googleviewer.html |archive-date=27 July 2011}}</ref> These vales are dotted with small villages, farms and [[coppice]]s, and include the Blackmore Vale ([[River Stour, Dorset|Stour valley]]) and the [[River Frome, Dorset|Frome valley]].<ref name="Chaffey 11"/><ref>Chaffey (p. 30)</ref> The Blackmore Vale is composed of older Jurassic deposits, largely clays interspersed with limestones,<ref name="Geology of Britain Viewer"/> and has traditionally been a centre for dairy agriculture.<ref>Wightman (p. 15)</ref> South-east Dorset, including the lower Frome valley and around Poole and Bournemouth, comprises younger Eocene deposits,<ref name="Geology of Britain Viewer"/> mainly sands and clays of poor agricultural quality.<ref>Wightman (pp. 22–25)</ref> The soils created from these deposits support a [[heathland]] habitat which sustains all six native [[List of reptiles of Great Britain|British reptile]] species.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dorsetforyou.com/336264 |title=Dorset's Heathland Reptiles |work=Dorset For You |publisher=[[Dorset County Council]] |access-date=8 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111004070541/http://www.dorsetforyou.com/336264 |archive-date=4 October 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> Most of the Dorset heathland has [[Site of Special Scientific Interest]] status, with three areas designated as internationally important [[Ramsar Convention|Ramsar sites]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/Images/135_Dorset_Heaths_tcm6-32146.pdf |title=Dorset Heaths Key Facts & Data |publisher=Natural England |access-date=22 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120904114808/http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/Images/135_Dorset_Heaths_tcm6-32146.pdf |archive-date=4 September 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref> In the far west of the county and along the coast there are frequent changes in rock strata, which appear in a less obviously sequential way compared to the landscapes of the chalk and the heath.<ref>Wightman (pp. 10, 19)</ref> In the west this results in a hilly landscape of diverse character that resembles that of neighbouring county [[Devon]].<ref>Wightman (p. 10)</ref> [[Marshwood Vale]], a valley of [[Lower Lias]] clay at the western tip of the county,<ref>Ensom (p. 21)</ref> lies to the south of the two highest points in Dorset: [[Lewesdon Hill]] at {{convert|279|m|ft}}{{sfn|Bathurst|2012|pp=119-125}} and [[Pilsdon Pen]] at {{convert|277|m|ft}}.{{sfn|Chaffey|2004|p=54}}

A former river valley flooded by rising sea levels 6,000 years ago, [[Poole Harbour]] is one of the largest natural harbours in the world.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/features/snapshotsofthepast/8721696.Harbour_masters/ |title=Harbour Masters |newspaper=[[Bournemouth Daily Echo]] |access-date=12 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110915145638/http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/features/snapshotsofthepast/8721696.Harbour_masters/ |archive-date=15 September 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.phc.co.uk/about.html |title=About Us |publisher=Poole Harbour Commissioners |access-date=14 February 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080921054711/http://www.phc.co.uk/about.html |archive-date=21 September 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref>
The harbour is very shallow in places and contains a number of islands, notably [[Brownsea Island]], the birthplace of the [[Scouting]] movement and one of the few remaining sanctuaries for indigenous [[red squirrel]]s in England.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pooleharbouraqmp.co.uk/pdf/ph_amp2006_Chapter_5.pdf |title=Nature Conservation and Landscape |pages=1–2 |year=2006 |work=Poole Harbour Management Plan |publisher=Poole Harbour Commissioners |access-date=11 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110913151443/http://www.pooleharbouraqmp.co.uk/pdf/ph_amp2006_Chapter_5.pdf |archive-date=13 September 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> The harbour, and the chalk and limestone hills of the [[Isle of Purbeck]] to the south, lie atop Western Europe's largest onshore [[oil field]].<ref name=WFAP>{{cite web |url=http://www.bp.com/liveassets/bp_internet/globalbp/STAGING/global_assets/downloads/U/uk_asset_wytch_farm.pdf |title=Wytch Farm |work=Asset Portfolio |pages=3, 4 |publisher=[[BP]] |access-date=8 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011111645/http://www.bp.com/liveassets/bp_internet/globalbp/STAGING/global_assets/downloads/U/uk_asset_wytch_farm.pdf |archive-date=11 October 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The field, operated by [[Perenco]] from [[Wytch Farm]], has the world's oldest continuously pumping well at [[Kimmeridge Oil Field|Kimmeridge]] which has been producing oil since the early 1960s.<ref name=WFAP/><ref name="Cullingford p.122">Cullingford (p. 122)</ref>
[[File:Lulworth Cove from Hambury Tout - geograph.org.uk - 4158867.jpg|thumb|[[Lulworth Cove]] from [[Hambury Tout]], on the [[Jurassic Coast]]]]
Dorset's diverse geography ensures it has an assortment of rivers, although a moderate annual rainfall coupled with rolling hills, means most are typically [[lowland]] in nature.<ref name="Wright 7">Wright (p. 7)</ref> Much of the county drains into three rivers, the Frome, [[River Piddle|Piddle]] and Stour which all flow to the sea in a south-easterly direction.<ref>Wright (pp. 6–7)</ref> The Frome and Piddle are [[chalk stream]]s but the Stour, which rises in Wiltshire to the north, has its origins in clay soil.<ref>Wright (pp. 7–14)</ref> The [[Hampshire Avon|River Avon]], which flows mainly through Wiltshire and Hampshire, enters Dorset towards the end of its journey at [[Christchurch Harbour]].<ref>Wright (pp. 16–17)</ref> The rivers [[River Axe (Lyme Bay)|Axe]] and [[River Yeo (South Somerset)|Yeo]], which principally drain the counties of Devon and [[Somerset]] respectively, have their sources in the north-west of the county. In the south-west, a number of small rivers run into the sea along the Dorset coastline; most notable of these are the [[River Char|Char]], [[River Brit|Brit]], [[River Bride, Dorset|Bride]] and [[River Wey, Dorset|Wey]].<ref name="Wright 17">Wright (pp. 6, 17)</ref>

Most of Dorset's coastline is part of the [[Jurassic Coast]], a [[World Heritage Site]], which stretches for {{convert|155|km}}<ref>{{cite web |url=https://whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=1029 |title=UNESCO Dorset and East Devon Coast |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |year=2012 |work=web page |publisher=UNESCO |access-date=13 December 2012 |archive-date=22 February 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070222211325/https://whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=1029 |url-status=live}}</ref> between Studland and [[Exmouth]] in Devon. This coast documents the entire [[Mesozoic]] era, from [[Triassic]] to Cretaceous, and is noted for its geological [[landform]]s.<ref name = "bbcjurassic">{{cite news |title=Jurassic coast is world wonder |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/1708397.stm |work=[[BBC News]] |access-date=12 August 2009 |date=13 December 2001 |archive-date=21 February 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090221003555/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/1708397.stm |url-status=live}}</ref> The Dorset section has yielded important fossils, including [[Petrified wood|Jurassic trees]] and the first complete [[Ichthyosaur]], discovered near Lyme Regis in 1811 by [[Mary Anning]].<ref name="bbcjurassic" /> The county features some notable coastal landforms, including examples of a [[cove]] ([[Lulworth Cove]]), a [[natural arch]] ([[Durdle Door]]) and chalk [[Stack (geology)|stacks]] ([[Old Harry Rocks]]).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.southwestcoastpath.org.uk/aboutthepath/description/dorset/ |title=Path Description&nbsp;– Dorset |publisher=South West Footpath Association |access-date=13 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110809182717/http://www.southwestcoastpath.org.uk/aboutthepath/description/dorset/ |archive-date=9 August 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jurassiccoast.com/380/the-coast-uncovered-30/geo-highlights-226/old-harry-rocks-the-end-of-the-story-623.html |title=Old Harry Rocks |publisher=Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site |access-date=18 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090828082548/http://www.jurassiccoast.com/380/the-coast-uncovered-30/geo-highlights-226/old-harry-rocks-the-end-of-the-story-623.html |archive-date=28 August 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Jutting out into the [[English Channel]] at roughly the midpoint of the Dorset coastline is the [[Isle of Portland]], a limestone island that is connected to the mainland by [[Chesil Beach]], a {{convert|27|km|adj=on}} long [[Shingle beach|shingle]] [[Shoal|barrier beach]] protecting [[Chesil Beach#The Fleet Lagoon|The Fleet]], Britain's largest tidal lagoon.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.westdorset.com/site/group-travel/itineraries/jurassic-jewels |title=Jewels of the Jurassic Coast |publisher=West Dorset District Council |access-date=13 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070703155333/http://www.westdorset.com/site/group-travel/itineraries/jurassic-jewels |archive-date=3 July 2007 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>Chaffey (pp. 68–70)</ref>

The county has one of the highest proportions of [[conservation area]]s in England, and two [[Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty|Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty]] (AONBs) cover 53% of the administrative county.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.swo.org.uk/EasysiteWeb/getresource.axd?AssetID=45845&type=full&servicetype=Inline |title=Dorset, Bournemouth, Poole Brief |page=1 |date=May 2010 |format=PDF |publisher=[[South West Observatory]] |access-date=19 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120802075121/http://www.swo.org.uk/EasysiteWeb/getresource.axd?AssetID=45845&type=full&servicetype=Inline |archive-date=2 August 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dorsetforyou.com/363371 |title=Planning constraints |work=Dorset For You |publisher=[[Dorset County Council]] |access-date=19 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110106073420/http://www.dorsetforyou.com/363371 |archive-date=6 January 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> It has two [[heritage coast]]s totalling {{convert|92|km|mi}}, and Sites of Special Scientific Interest covering {{convert|199|km2|sqmi|0|abbr=on}}.<ref name="coastline">{{cite web |year=2007 |url=http://www.dorsetforyou.com/index.jsp?articleid=332789 |title=Length of coastline and coastal designations |work=Dorset For You |publisher=[[Dorset County Council]] |access-date=25 July 2007 |archive-date=27 September 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927201635/http://www.dorsetforyou.com/index.jsp?articleid=332789 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="sssi">{{cite web |year=2007 |url=http://www.dorsetforyou.com/index.jsp?articleid=332782 |title=Nature Conservation Designations&nbsp;– SSSIs |work=Dorset For You |publisher=[[Dorset County Council]] |access-date=25 July 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927201809/http://www.dorsetforyou.com/index.jsp?articleid=332782 |archive-date=27 September 2007 |url-status=live}}</ref> The [[South West Coast Path]], a [[National Trail]], begins at South Haven Point at the entrance to Poole Harbour.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.magazine.ordnancesurveyleisure.co.uk/magazine/tscontent/editorials/walking/2011/south-west-coast-path.html |title=The South West Coast Path |publisher=[[Ordnance Survey]] |access-date=30 January 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111014043924/http://www.magazine.ordnancesurveyleisure.co.uk/magazine/tscontent/editorials/walking/2011/south-west-coast-path.html |archive-date=14 October 2011}}</ref> There are also substantial areas of [[Green belt (United Kingdom)|green belt]] surrounding the [[South East Dorset conurbation]], filling in the area between this and the [[Cranborne Chase and West Wiltshire Downs]] AONB.

===Climate===
{{climate chart|[[Weymouth, Dorset]]
| 4.5| 9.0|84.3
| 4.1| 8.9|60.5
| 5.2|10.6|58.1
| 6.6|12.9|52.4
| 9.3|15.7|44.6
|12.0|18.1|45.9
|14.0|20.0|40.7
|14.4|20.3|55.4
|12.7|18.7|54.9
|10.4|15.5|82.7
| 7.4|12.2|98.7
| 5.1| 9.7|92.2
|float=right|clear=right
|source=[[Met Office]], 1991–2020<ref>{{cite web | year = 2021 | url = https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/research/climate/maps-and-data/uk-climate-averages/gbypzdmp7 | title = Station: Weymouth, Wyke Regis | publisher = [[Met Office|Meteorological (Met) Office]] | access-date =1 August 2022}}</ref>
}}
Dorset's climate of warm summers and mild winters is partly due to its position on Britain's south coast. The third most southerly county in the UK, Dorset is less affected by the more intense Atlantic winds than [[Cornwall]] and Devon. Dorset, along with the entire [[South West England]], has higher winter temperatures, average {{convert|4.5|to|8.7|C|F}}, than the rest of the United Kingdom.<ref name="winter">{{cite web |year=2001 |url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/tmean/16.gif |title=Mean Temperature Winter Average |publisher=[[Met Office]] |access-date=14 August 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070109072339/http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/tmean/16.gif |archive-date=9 January 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> However, Dorset maintains higher summer temperatures than Devon and Cornwall, with average highs of {{convert|19.1|to|22.2|C|F}}.<ref name="summer">{{cite web |year=2001 |url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/tmax/14.gif |title=Maximum Temperature Summer Average |publisher=[[Met Office]] |access-date=14 August 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070109072700/http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/tmax/14.gif |archive-date=9 January 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Excluding hills such as the Dorset Downs, the average annual temperature of the county is {{convert|9.8|to|12|C|F}}.<ref name="annual">{{cite web |year=2001 |url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/tmean/17.gif |title=Mean Temperature Annual Average |publisher=[[Met Office]] |access-date=14 August 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070109065731/http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/tmean/17.gif |archive-date=9 January 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

The south coast counties of Dorset, Hampshire, [[West Sussex]], [[East Sussex]] and [[Kent]] enjoy more sunshine than anywhere else in the United Kingdom, receiving 1,541–1,885 hours a year.<ref name="sunshine">{{cite web |year=2001 |url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/ss/17.gif |title=Sunshine Duration Annual Average |publisher=[[Met Office]] |access-date=14 August 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061202183238/http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/ss/17.gif |archive-date=2 December 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Average annual rainfall varies across the county—southern and eastern coastal areas receive {{convert|700|–|800|mm|in|abbr=on}} per year; the Dorset Downs receive between {{convert|1000|and(-)|1,250|mm|in|abbr=on}} per year; less than much of Devon and Cornwall to the west but more than counties to the east.<ref name="rainfall">{{cite web |year=2011 |url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/8110_1km/Rainfall_Average_1981-2010_17.gif |title=Rainfall Amount Annual Average 1981–2010 |publisher=[[Met Office]] |access-date=7 January 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140107151017/http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/8110_1km/Rainfall_Average_1981-2010_17.gif |archive-date=7 January 2014 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>
{{excerpt|Weymouth, Dorset|Climate|only=templates|templates=weather box}}{{clear right}}