In terms of fundamental processes shaping planetary formation, it is thought that Mars contains the most in-depth and accurate historical record, because it is big enough to have undergone the earliest accretion and internal heating processes that shaped the terrestrial planets, but is small enough to have retained signs of those processes.
U smislu temeljnih procesa koji oblikuju planetarnu formaciju, smatra se da Mars sadrži najdublji i točniji povijesni zapis, jer je dovoljno velik da je doživio najranije procese stvaranja i unutarnjeg zagrijavanja koji su oblikovali zemaljske planete, ali je dovoljno mali da imaju zadržane znakove tih procesa.