The feature is geographically divided into two halves: East and West Candor Chasmas, respectively.

It is unclear how the canyon originally formed; one theory is that it was expanded and deepened by tectonic processes similar to a graben, while another suggests that it was formed by subsurface water erosion similar to a karst.

The climate of Mars may have been such in the past that water ran on its surface.

It has been known for some time that Mars undergoes many large changes in its tilt or obliquity because its two small moons lack the gravity to stabilize it, as the Moon stabilizes Earth; at times the tilt of Mars has even been greater than 80 degrees[3][4]

This article about geology, geography or other features of the planet Mars or its moons is a stub.