People swim and sunbathe on a reopened beach at the Black Sea on Aug. 22 in Odesa. When missiles and drone attacks first hit the city — and Russian naval vessels started laying explosive sea mines around the port — the beaches were closed. Warning signs urged people to keep their distance. Pierre Crom/Getty Images hide caption
Waves roll up to homes perched over a sandy beach in Malibu, Calif. A new study predicts that, with limited human intervention, 24 to 75% of Southern California beaches could completely erode back to coastal infrastructure or sea cliffs by the year 2100. AP Photo/John Antczak/AP hide caption
Family building a sandcastle. FangXiaNuo/Getty Images hide caption
A tourist strolls along the white sand of Maya Beach in Thailand. The destination was once overrun by visitors, but thanks in part to the pandemic, its ecosystem has had time to recover. Michael Sullivan/NPR hide caption
To help keep weak swimmers safe, stay "touch-close" and don't rely on a busy lifeguard to be the only eyes on a crowded pool or beach. It's best, say experts working to prevent drownings, to designate a nondrinking adult to scan the water at any pool party or beach outing, and to rotate that "watching" shift every 30 minutes to keep fresh eyes on the kids. Imgorthand/Getty Images hide caption
Uncovered fiber rolls in front of a private home on Town Neck Beach in Sandwich, Mass. Made from coconut fiber and filled with sand, they are designed to prevent beach erosion. Hayley Fager/WCAI hide caption
Tourists walk along a beach in Malay town, on the Philippine island Boracay, last week. President Duterte's decision to close Boracay has rocked the island. The Philippines is set to deploy hundreds of riot police to keep travelers out and head off potential protests before its six-month closure to tourists. STR/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
Martins Beach near Half Moon Bay, south of San Francisco. Vinod Khosla bought Martins Beach in July 2008 for some $37 million. Michele Ursino/Flickr hide caption
Researcher Chris Lowe releases a juvenile white shark earlier this spring. Cal State Long Beach Shark Lab hide caption
A couple watches fireworks exploding over Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro on Jan. 1. Some 2 million people visit the beach on New Year's Eve. Lifeguards say they usually perform more rescues than any other time of the year. Felipe Dana/AP hide caption
Beachgoers in central Russia are caught in a freak hailstorm. YouTube hide caption
Lazy day summer beach goers relax on the sands of Rehoboth Beach in Delaware. Ted Van Pelt/Flickr hide caption
San Juan Creek meets the Pacific Ocean at Doheny State Beach in Dana Point, Calif. The poor water quality off Doheny State Beach put in a list of worst beaches in the U.S. Reed Saxon/AP hide caption
