for incorporation into the maps. Anticipated results are expected to 

 aid planning for future exploration of the basin and to stimulate 

 international cooperative studies. USGS, the U.S. Bureau of Mines 

 (USBM), and other components of DOI conduct a variety of studies 

 devoted to discovery, evaluation, recovery, and processing of 

 manganese nodules and other mineral resources of the sea floor. In 

 April 1975 USBM began a definitive compilation of data concerning 

 the location, density, and concentration of resouce elements in 

 Pacific Ocean manganese nodules for inclusion in its Minerals 

 Availability System. During 1974, DOI established an Ocean Mining 

 Administration with the following functions: 



(1) To represent and coordinate the full scope of DOI's mineral 

 commodity and resource management interests with Congress, other 

 Federal agencies, and the mineral industries 



(2) To formulate Federal policies on ocean mineral resources 

 development 



(3) To prepare legislation and coordinate preparation of suppor- 

 ting documentation 



Processes and Properties of Modern Sedimentation 



Federally funded research on more recent marine sediments can be 

 divided into two broad categories. The first category encompasses 

 studies of the physical properties of marine sediments. Because a 

 high percentage of our knowledge of sediments has come through the 

 use of acoustic techniques, it is important to understand those 

 properties that control the acoustic"signature" of marine sediments. 

 Programs in the second category are examinations of the processes 

 of erosion and redistribution of sediments on the deep-sea floor and 

 continental shelves. Recent research has shown that certain regions 

 of the sea floor are a dynamic environment in which sediment 

 transport is the rule rather than the exception. Both of these 

 categories of research are needed to provide information required for 

 offshore construction and development. 



The objective of Navy-funded programs in acoustic research is to 

 provide a global capability to predict or assess the ocean floor 

 environment for any naval system or operational requirement. This 

 program comprises three parts: shipboard studies, which include 

 towing of various types of arrays to record the interaction of sound 

 with the sea-floor sediments and crustal layers; laboratory studies 

 of sound speed in various rock and sediment layers; and theoretical 

 studies on data acquisition and signal processing. 



Under this program, scientists working off the Atlantic coast of 

 South America have shown the presence of sea-floor reflectivity 

 provinces that can be related directly to sedimentation processes 



48 



