Ground ice on Mars probably consists largely of carbon dioxide hydrate, CO(2) . 6H(2)O. This hydrate dissociates upon release of pressure at temperatures between 0 degrees and 10 degrees C. The heat capacity of the ground would be sufficient to produce up to 4 percent (by volume) of water at a rate equal to that at which it can be drained away. Catastrophic dissociation of carbon dioxide hydrate during some past epoch when the near surface temperature was in this range would have produced chaotic terrain and flood channels.