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Comparative planetology interprets newly discovered features on other planets and their moons by comparing them with similar features on Earth. In performing such studies, similarity in ‘structure’ is assumed to imply similarity in ‘process’. In the case of Mars, dry river valleys and lake beds have been observed. These features are interpreted and understood in terms of extant rivers and lakes on Earth. Since Mars is presently too cold for liquid water hydrology, the results are used to develop past climatological models.
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