Comets, Asteroids, and Meteors- Oh My!

Comets Description: Cold clumps of gases and dusty ice from the outer parts of the solar system Comet means long haired star Called “Dirty Snowballs”

Comet 3 parts: Nucleus Coma Tail: always points away from sun

Comet

Parts Explained Nucleus – mass of ice and frozen gas Coma – cloud of gas that surrounds the nucleus Tail – formed when the comet travels near the sun; it’s the nucleus vaporizing

Comet Orbits Comets have long, narrow elliptical orbits Short period comets are found in the Kuiper Belt Long period comets are found in the Oort Cloud Sometimes, comets get too close to the sun, and then…

NASA

Famous Comets Hale- Bopp 1997

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More… Comet Hyakutake 1996

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In 1994, Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 collided with Jupiter.

Asteroids Description: Rocky remains from the formation of the solar system Notable Asteroids: Ceres – now a dwarf planet, only one in the asteroid belt Vesta – can be seen without a telescope

Asteroids Composition: Location/Orbit: Rocky, iron, or rocky-iron Asteroid Belt – between Mars and Jupiter Trojans – orbit with a planet Near Earth Asteroids – cross the Earth’s orbit

Asteroid Belt The region between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, where many asteroids are found.

Asteroids Size: Varies from a few hundred feet to a few hundred miles Jupiter’s relationship with asteroids: Scientists believe the asteroid belt is the remains of a planet that never formed because of Jupiter’s gravity Evidence asteroids have hit planets: Impact craters like the one thought to have caused the dinosaur extinction

Asteroids…

Asteroids Summary Not all asteroids are located in the asteroids belt and can pass near Earth Jupiter’s gravity kept the asteroids from forming a planet Some asteroids orbit just before and after Jupiter Largest asteroid, Ceres, is 580 mi across but most are less than a few miles across

Asteroid Impacts Summary Scientists think an asteroid impact near Mexico caused the dinosaur extinction. Chicxulub Crater in Mexico

Asteroid Impact crater in Canada http://www.mnh.si.edu/

Meteors Description: Rocky or metal debris in space; most no bigger than a pebble Meteoroid: a small chunk of rock or dust in space Meteor: a streak of light in the sky produced by the burning of a meteoroid in Earth’s atmosphere Meteorite: a meteoroid that has hit Earth’s surface

Meteoroids Meteoroids are small chunks of rock and dust left over from asteroids and comets that pass by the Earth. Composition: rocky, iron, or mixed Location/orbit: Found within the path of the Earth’s orbit around the sun.

Meteoroids Types: Stony Iron Stony-Iron Meteor Shower: yearly predictable meteors when Earth passes through comet or asteroid debris

Meteors Meteor Impact Crater in Arizona. 3 types: Meteor: a streak of light in the sky produced by the burning of a meteoroid in Earth’s atmosphere Meteoroid: a chunk of rock or dust in space Meteorite: a meteoroid that has hit Earth’s surface

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