NUMERICAL MODELING OF MARINE SEDIMENTARY PROCESSES: THE NATURE, SCIENTIFIC PROBLEMS, AND PROSPECT

In the present contribution the functions of numerical models in marine sedimentary geology are analyzed. The basic research in earth sciences is characterized by a combination of forward modeling and inverse (i.e. core analysis) methods. Numerical modeling represents an important tool for the research, which can play a key role in the understanding of processes and mechanisms associated with a geological system, the formulation of working hypotheses for further studies, and the design of field measurements and sampling schemes. At the same time, with the interaction between the numerical experiments and the analysis of ground truth data, the models themselves may be improved, approaching a sophisticated status. In the field of marine sedimentary geology, numerical modeling will contribute significantly to the studies of sediment transport and accumulation processes, morphodynamic processes, the formation of Holocene costal and shelf sedimentary sequences and stratigraphic records, deposits of extreme events, as well as environmental dynamics and ecosystem dynamics, in the near future. At the present stage, the models have to be able to deal with complex natural systems and, therefore, they are becoming increasingly complicated in structure and functioning. In order to cope with such a situation, a "community modeling" approach should be adopted to improve the modeling techniques.