Geomorphologic Evidence for Liquid Water

Abstract

Besides Earth, Mars is the only planet with a record of resurfacing processes and environmental circumstancesthat indicate zhe past operation of a hydrologic cycle. However the present-day conditions on Mars are far apart of supporting liquid water on the surface. Although the large-scale morphology of the Martian channels and valleys show remarkable similarities with fluid-eroded features on Earth, there are majordifferences in their size, small-scale morphology, inner channel structure and source regions indicating that erosion on Mars has its own characteristic genesis and evolution. The different landforms related to fluvial, glacial and periglacial activities, their relations with volcanism, and the chronology of water-related processes, are presented.