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What questions do you have about meteors, asteroids, and comets?

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What questions do you have about meteors, asteroids, and comets?

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Use the linked resources below to learn more about astronomical phenomena. You may also do some of your own research, but use good resources!

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Use the linked resources below to learn more about astronomical phenomena. You may also do some of your own research, but use good resources!

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What do you know about meteors, asteroids, and comets?

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What do you know about meteors, asteroids, and comets?

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Discovery Channel - Large Asteroid Impact Simulation

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If it's time for a meteor shower, you won't need a telescope, binoculars, or a high mountain to have a "star gazing" party. You might need a warm sleeping bag and an alarm clock to wake you in the middle of the night. But then just lying down in your own back yard will put you in the perfect spot to enjoy a great show.

A meteor is a space rock-or meteoroid-that enters Earth's atmosphere. As the space rock falls toward Earth, the resistance-or drag-of the air on the rock makes it extremely hot. What we see is a "shooting star." That bright streak is not actually the rock, but rather the glowing hot air as the hot rock zips through the atmosphere.

When Earth encounters many meteoroids at once, we call it a meteor shower.

Why would Earth encounter many meteoroids at once? Well, comets, like Earth and the other planets, also orbit the sun. Unlike the nearly circular orbits of the planets, the orbits of comets are usually quite lop-sided.

As a comet gets closer to the sun, some of its icy surface boils off, releasing lots of particles of dust and rock. This comet debris gets strewn out along the comet's path, especially in the inner solar system (where we live) as the sun's heat boils off more and more ice and debris. Then, several times each year as Earth makes its journey around the sun, its orbit crosses the orbit of a comet, which means Earth smacks into a bunch of comet debris.

The meteoroids are usually small, from dust particle to boulder size. They are almost always small enough to quickly burn up in our atmosphere, so there's little chance any of them will strike Earth's surface. But there is a good chance that you can see a beautiful shooting star show in the middle of the night!

In the case of a meteor shower, the glowing streaks may appear anywhere in the sky, but their "tails" all seem to point back to the same spot in the sky. That's because all the meteors are coming at us at the same angle, and as they get closer to Earth the effect of perspective makes them seem to get farther apart. It's like standing in the middle of railroad tracks and seeing how the two tracks come together in the distance.

Meteor showers are named for the constellation where the meteors appear to be coming from. So, for example, the Orionids Meteor Shower, which occurs in October each year, appear to be originating near the constellation Orion the Hunter.

Here are dates of major meteor showers. Peak viewing times will vary by a day or two each year. Keep in mind: If the moon is full or near full, you may not see many meteors. Some years are better than others for numbers of meteors per hour.

For more information, visit the NASA Solar System Exploration meteor and meteorite page.

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If it's time for a meteor shower, you won't need a telescope, binoculars, or a high mountain to have a "star gazing" party. You might need a warm sleeping bag and an alarm clock to wake you in the middle of the night.

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An asteroid is a small rocky object that orbits the Sun. Asteroids are smaller than a planet, but they are larger than the pebble-size objects we call meteoroids. A meteor is what happens when a meteoroid - a small piece of an asteroid or comet - burns up upon entering Earth's atmosphere, creating a streak of light in the sky.

An asteroid is a small rocky object that orbits the Sun. A meteor is what happens when a small piece of an asteroid or comet, called a meteoroid, burns up upon entering Earth's atmosphere. Read on to find out more and learn the difference between asteroids and comets, meteoroids and meteorites, and more!

Asteroids

An asteroid is a small rocky body that orbits the Sun.

Asteroids are smaller than a planet, but they are larger than the pebble-size objects we call meteoroids. Most asteroids in our solar system are found in the main asteroid belt, a region between Mars and Jupiter. But they can also hang out in other locations around the solar system. For example, some asteroids orbit the Sun in a path that takes them near Earth.

Meteoroids

Sometimes one asteroid can smash into another. This can cause small pieces of the asteroid to break off. Those pieces are called meteoroids. Meteoroids can also come from comets.

Meteors

If a meteoroid comes close enough to Earth and enters Earth's atmosphere, it vaporizes and turns into a meteor: a streak of light in the sky.

Because of their appearance, these streaks of light are sometimes called "shooting stars." But meteors are not actually stars.

Because meteors leave streaks of light in the sky, they are sometimes confused with comets. However, these two things are very different.

Comets

Comets orbit the Sun, like asteroids. But comets are made of ice and dust-not rock.

As a comet's orbit takes it toward the Sun, the ice and dust begin to vaporize. That vaporized ice and dust become the comet's tail. You can see a comet even when it is very far from Earth. However, when you see a meteor, it's in our atmosphere.

Meteorites

Sometimes meteoroids don't vaporize completely in the atmosphere. In fact, sometimes they survive their trip through Earth's atmosphere and land on the Earth's surface. When they land on Earth, they are called meteorites.

NASA's Johnson Space Center has a collection of meteorites that have been collected from many different locations on Earth. The collection acts as a meteorite library for scientists. By studying different types of meteorites, scientists can learn more about asteroids, planets and other parts of our solar system.

Because asteroids formed in the early days of our solar system nearly 4.6 billion years ago, meteorites can give scientists information about what the solar system was like way back then!

Related Resources for Educators

Astromaterials 3D: A virtual library for exploration and research of NASA's space rock collections
Asteroid Resources from NASA JPL Education

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Asteroid or Meteor: What's the Difference?

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Learn more about asteroids, meteors, meteoroids, meteorites, and comets!

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INFOGRAPHIC: Looking at meteor impact craters from around the world - MINING.COM

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Asteroids are small, rocky objects that orbit the sun. Although asteroids orbit the sun like planets, they are much smaller than planets.

There are lots of asteroids in our solar system. Most of them live in the main asteroid belt -a region between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.

Asteroids hang out in other places, too. For example, some asteroids are found in the orbital path of planets. This means that the asteroid and the planet follow the same path around the sun. Earth and a few other planets have asteroids like this.

Where did asteroids come from?

Asteroids are left over from the formation of our solar system. Our solar system began about 4.6 billion years ago when a big cloud of gas and dust collapsed. When this happened, most of the material fell to the center of the cloud and formed the sun.

Some of the condensing dust in the cloud became planets. The objects in the asteroid belt never had the chance to be incorporated into planets. They are leftovers from that time long ago when planets formed.

Are all asteroids the same?

No way! Because asteroids formed in different locations at different distances from the sun, no two asteroids are alike. Here are a few ways that they differ:

Asteroids aren't all round like planets. They have jagged and irregular shapes.

Some asteroids are hundreds of miles in diameter, but many more are as small as pebbles.

Most asteroids are made of different kinds of rocks, but some have clays or metals, such as nickel and iron.

What can we learn from asteroids?

Since asteroids formed at the same time as other objects in our solar system, these space rocks can give scientists lots of information about the history of planets and the sun. Scientists can learn about asteroids by studying meteorites: tiny bits of asteroids that have flown through our atmosphere and landed on Earth's surface.

Several NASA space missions have also flown by and observed asteroids. The NEAR Shoemaker spacecraft landed on Eros, an asteroid near Earth, in 2001. Then, the Dawn spacecraft traveled to the asteroid belt in 2011. It orbited and studied the giant asteroid Vesta and the dwarf planet Ceres.

In 2016, NASA launched the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft to study an asteroid near Earth named Bennu. After studying Bennu for a few years, OSIRIS-REx scooped up a sample of dust and rocks from the asteroid's surface.

Now, OSIRIS-REx is headed back to Earth! Its sample container will land in the Utah desert in September 2023. Scientists will then collect the container and examine the dust and rocks for clues about how planets formed and life began.

Will an asteroid ever hit Earth?

There are no known impact threats, but tiny meteors burn up in Earth's atmosphere all the time! Watch this video to learn more from NASA asteroid expert Dr. Kelly Fast.

Related Resources for Educators

Asteroid Resources from NASA JPL Education

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And what can we learn from these space rocks in our solar system?

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Use one of the Data Bases in the Secondary Library Learning Commons. Remember: login & password info is in our Google Classroom.

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Use one of the Data Bases in the Secondary Library Learning Commons. Remember: login & password info is in our Google Classroom.

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It's hard to believe, but Google is not the only search engine out there. What's more, it's not always the best research tool. For more info regarding how Google limits your search results, watch the video below.

Check current events, research news from the past, compare cultural viewpoints, and follow the latest in arts, sports, and the environment.

London Free Press

Magazines
Many traditional print magazines offer online versions. Browse these to help with research.
Government Resources
For an A-Z list of all government agencies,

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It's hard to believe, but Google is not the only search engine out there. What's more, it's not always the best research tool. For more info regarding how Google limits your search results, watch the video below. Check current events, research news from the past, compare cultural viewpoints, and follow the latest in arts, sports, and the environment.

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I don't know much about Meteors and Asteroids, but i know that Comets are icy and when they pass the sun they release gas which causes the ¨Tail¨ of the comet to be visible

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I don't know much about Meteors and Asteroids, but i know that Comets are icy and when they pass the sun they release gas which causes the ¨Tail¨ of the comet to be visible

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I want to know how Meteors, Asteroids, and Comets form

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I want to know how Meteors, Asteroids, and Comets form

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The difference between meteors and meteorites is a meteor is a shooting star and they don't land on earth a meteorite is when the meteor lands on earth

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The difference between meteors and meteorites is a meteor is a shooting star and they don't land on earth a meteorite is when the meteor lands on earth

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It's a bunch of meteors that come from the sky and in the sky they look like white streaks 

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It's a bunch of meteors that come from the sky and in the sky they look like white streaks 

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They both orbit the sun but the difference is a asteroid is made of rock well a comet is made up of ice and dust

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They both orbit the sun but the difference is a asteroid is made of rock well a comet is made up of ice and dust

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They are found mostly in the main asteroid belt 

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They are found mostly in the main asteroid belt 

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We learn that asteroids come from the asteroid belt a place between Mars and Jupiter

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We learn that asteroids come from the asteroid belt a place between Mars and Jupiter

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We also learn that asteroids are made of rock and that they are not to tiny but also not so big 

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We also learn that asteroids are made of rock and that they are not to tiny but also not so big 

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The kuiper belt is a place beyond Neptune it normally holds comets, asteroids and etc.

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The kuiper belt is a place beyond Neptune it normally holds comets, asteroids and etc.

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It formed from tiny objects of ice from the solar system 

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It formed from tiny objects of ice from the solar system 

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Comets form from small objects of ice and dust from the solar system 

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Comets form from small objects of ice and dust from the solar system 

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Meteors form from small pieces of asteroids that broke apart from the asteroid belt 

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Meteors form from small pieces of asteroids that broke apart from the asteroid belt 

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A average temperature of a asteroid is minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit

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A average temperature of a asteroid is minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit