The fault in our TARs: A critical review of research paradigms for intermediate‐scale bedforms on Mars

Abstract

We provide a critical review of research paradigms for classifying intermediate‐scale aeolian bedforms on Mars and the new terminology that has emerged. The systematic classification of bedforms has always been challenging and debated, and no paradigmatic knowledge organization system exists beyond general agreement on the importance of a distinction between ripples and dunes. The diverse aeolian landscapes of Mars have introduced further topics and challenges to these debates. We argue that Martian aeolian geomorphology's knowledge organization system for intermediate‐scale bedforms is preparadigmatic and that consensus over terminology and their definitions has not been established in the literature. A preparadigmatic science can be functional only if scientists operating in the discipline provide precise, falsifiable definitions or use abductive logic. Drawing on evidence and examples from the literature, we argue that the replacement of the conventional abductive paradigm used in bedform classification with inductive logic has created an emerging disciplinary paradigm based on scientific hesitancy and a dependence on complex inductive research structures, epitomized by the concepts of ‘transverse aeolian ridges’ (TARs) and ‘large Martian ripples’ (LMRs). We show that TAR and, increasingly, LMR are inductive constructs that have been popularized despite them causing significant confusion. Notably, we highlight how the terms are irreconcilably used as both a class of bedform and as a non‐genetic placeholder term for bedforms. Suggestions for moving beyond the need for TAR and LMR are provided, focusing on a return to more direct and local hypothesis‐driven research inspired by W.M. Davis's notion of outrageous geological hypotheses. Recent debate surrounding bedforms in Gale crater is presented as an example of the productivity of such an approach, and it is recommended that TAR and LMR no longer be used.