Seebett

Seebett, often translated as seabed, is the bottom surface of a sea, ocean, or lake. It forms the interface between the water column and the substrate and hosts a range of geological and biological processes. The term covers both marine and freshwater contexts, including coastal zones, continental shelves, deep basins, and lake bottoms.

Composition: The seabed is made up of sediments and sometimes exposed bedrock. Marine sediments include sands, silts, clays, carbonates, and siliceous sediments, with variations by depth and proximity to land. In lakes, sediments can show layered sequences such as varves, with alternating light and dark layers reflecting seasons. Organic material, minerals, and fossils may be present.

Topography and processes: The seabed exhibits features such as plains, slopes, canyons, ridges, seamounts, and abyssal fans. Sedimentation is shaped by currents, waves, turbidity flows, and bioturbation by bottom-dwelling organisms. Diagenetic processes change sediment composition over time.

Ecology and research: Benthic communities live on or within the seabed and include invertebrates and microorganisms that drive nutrient cycles and carbon storage. Researchers study the seabed using sonar mapping, sub-bottom profiling, and sediment cores to determine texture, composition, age, and ecological status.

Human impact and significance: Seabed environments are affected by dredging, bottom trawling, offshore construction, and seabed mining, which can disturb habitats and release pollutants. Understanding the seabed is important for fisheries management, climate research, and archaeological study, as sediments preserve records of past environmental conditions.