Final answer:
An increasing tilt in the land surface can indicate soil movement like soil creep or solifluction, and is significant in the study of periodic climate changes on Earth and Mars. It highlights the impact of axial tilt on ecosystems, water resources, global warming, and modern civilization.
Step-by-step explanation:
An increasing tilt in the land surface can be indicative of geological processes such as soil creep or solifluction, often related to freeze-thaw cycles. This phenomena can create terraced patterns on slopes due to the expansion and contraction of soil moisture with changing temperatures. In a broader context, variations in Earth's axial tilt are also known to affect global climate patterns over millennia, contributing to periodic climate changes such as ice ages. Similarly, observations of terraced layers on Mars suggest that the planet has undergone cyclic climate changes with dust and ice deposition over tens of thousands of years, potentially influenced by gravitational interactions within the solar system.
Increased axial tilt can lead to more pronounced seasonal changes, affecting ecosystems, water resources, and weather patterns. For example, a shift in tilt can affect snow cover, ice cap melting rates, and global warming, as well as having implications for modern civilization due to rising sea levels and changes in temperature and precipitation.