ABSTRACT
Knowledge of marine sediments has increased in recent decades through the use of modern methods: remote sensing, high-resolution bathymetric methods, oceanic soundings, and reconnaissance by submarines. The oceanic environment is the general receptacle for all materials that come from terrestrial erosion and are carried off by water. Oceans exhibit a wide diversity of environments, processes, and interactions between the living world and the mineral world. The oceanic environment is not homogeneous. Its variability is governed by distance to coastlines and water depth. Rock debris from erosion of the coasts or fluvial sediment input undergoes the combined effects of the principal water movements that affect the ocean shoreline: waves, coastal currents, tides, and currents in areas where rivers flow into the sea. Waves are created by the movement of water molecules, primarily as a result of the shearing effect of the wind on the water surface.
