Many think that, because of the vastness of the oceans, the continents were underwater throughout the Hadean and much of the Archean periods. It wasn't until the Mesoarchean that continents began to emerge, initiating the processes of river and wind-based weathering. However, the exact nature of weathering from the Hadean to the Mesoarchean remains a question. Is it possible that most sedimentation was influenced by tides in deep marine environments, with only a few resulting from chemical processes?