1. An anatomical mapping system comprising: a mapping probe, the mapping probe comprising a catheter body and a three-dimensional multiple electrode structure disposed at a distal end of the catheter body, the three-dimensional multiple electrode structure comprising a plurality of mapping electrodes configured to be positioned within an anatomical structure and to detect activation signals of intrinsic events within the anatomical structure, each of the plurality of mapping electrodes having an electrode location; and a processing system associated with the plurality of mapping electrodes, the processing system configured to record the detected activation signals and associate at least one of the plurality of mapping electrodes with each recorded activation signal, the processing system further configured to: determine a first intrinsic event associated with a first time; generate a persistent display of at least one relevant characteristic of the detected activation signals of the first intrinsic event; determine a second intrinsic event associated with a second time; update, in a real-time mode, the persistent display with at least one relevant characteristic of the second intrinsic event upon the determination of the second intrinsic event; display, simultaneously, in a playback mode, a representation of the first intrinsic event and a representation of the second intrinsic event; determine a similarity metric associated with the first and second intrinsic events, wherein the similarity metric is based on a cross-correlation between a first characteristic pattern and a second characteristic pattern, the first and second characteristic patterns representing the first event and the second intrinsic events, respectively, in at least one of a vector field map and an iso-potential contour map; and highlight, on a user interface of the persistent display, in the playback mode, and based on the similarity metric, the representations of the first and second intrinsic events to indicate that the first and second intrinsic events are similar intrinsic events.