The rocks and stones on the beach are rounded from thousands of years of being rolled against each other or washed by sand-carrying breakers. Waves also erode cliffs along the beaches. They undercut the cliffs, and eventually the cliffs fall. The ocean along the coast of California is slowly pushing back the cliffs. Wind Wind picks up dust and sand.
Sand storms can act like sand blasters if the wind is moving fast enough.
In the desert the wind moves the sand into dunes, piling it up and covering the surfaces with ripples. Chemical Action There are chemicals in the air. Some of these chemicals can corrode rocks, and fairly quickly, too. The names on marble gravestones can be wiped away in only a couple of centuries. Carvings on buildings are being digested by chemicals that cause air pollution.