Comet passed just 87,000 miles (140,000km) from the red planet Tonnes of comet dust bombarded the Martian sky Created incredible scene of thousands of fireballs an hour. Warped the Martian atmosphere leaving metals and a yellow afterglow Opportunity rover on the surface returned an image of the comet Event provided unprecedented opportunity for researchers to gather data Siding Spring comes from the Oort Cloud in the outer solar system

By Mark Prigg and Jonathan O'Callaghan for MailOnline

Published: 18:38 EST, 7 November 2014 | Updated: 01:12 EST, 8 November 2014

136 shares

25

View comments

It was one of the most incredible displays ever seen - yet only a handful of rovers and spacecraft were there to witness it.

Nasa has revealed the data its spacecraft gathered whenComet Siding Spring, which passed just 87,000 miles(139,500 km) by Mars on Oct. 19.

Experts describe the scene, with thousands of shooting stars per hour and the entire sky changing colour as 'mind blowing'.

Comet Siding Spring approaching Mars, shown with Nasa's orbiters preparing to make science observations of this unique encounter. A pristine distant comet created a once-in-eight-million-year fireworks show on Mars and no humans were there to witness it.

See the rest here:

Nasa reveals comet that grazed Mars