2 (b.e.) Meteorite
You can think of a comet as a “dirty snowball” about the size of a mountain. Comets are loose collections of ice, dust, and small rocky particles whose orbits are usually very long, narrow ellipses. As a comet approaches the sun and heats up, some of its gas and dust stream outward, forming a tail.
Asteroids, are too small and too numerous to be considered full-fledged planets. Most asteroids revolve around the sun between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. This region of the solar system, is called the asteroid belt.
A meteoroid is a chunk of rock or dust in space.
When a meteoroid enters Earth’s atmosphere, friction with the air creates heat and produces a streak of light in the sky—a meteor. If the meteoroid is large enough, it may not burn up completely. Meteoroids that pass through the atmosphere and hit Earth’s surface are called meteorites.
Asteroids, are too small and too numerous to be considered full-fledged planets. Most asteroids revolve around the sun between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. This region of the solar system, is called the asteroid belt.
A meteoroid is a chunk of rock or dust in space.
When a meteoroid enters Earth’s atmosphere, friction with the air creates heat and produces a streak of light in the sky—a meteor. If the meteoroid is large enough, it may not burn up completely. Meteoroids that pass through the atmosphere and hit Earth’s surface are called meteorites.