Asteroids

Asteroid Belt An asteroid is a bit of rock Left over after the Sun and all the planets were formed. Most asteroids in our solar system can be found orbiting the Sun - between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter Known as the asteroid belt

The Asteroid Belt

Ceres Largest asteroid found (so far) in the asteroid belt is as big as the state of Texas –Named Ceres.

Asteroid Belt

Think about it this way: –The asteroid belt is a big highway in a circle around the Sun. –asteroids are cars on the highway.

Sometimes, the asteroid cars run into one another –Asteroids may break up into smaller asteroids –Scientists think that most asteroids are the result of collisions between larger, rocky space bodies.

Asteroids can be a few feet to several hundred km’s wide The belt contains at least 40,000 asteroids that are more than 2 km’s across

Meteoroids (meteors and meteorites)

Using Meteorites In Greenland, people dig up meteorites and use the iron in them to make tools.

METEOROIDS A piece of stone- or metal-like debris which travels in outer space. Most meteoroids are no bigger than a pebble. –Large meteoroids are believed to come from the asteroid belt.

Meteors Smaller meteoroids may have come from the Moon or Mars. If a meteoroid falls into the Earth's atmosphere, it will begin to heat up and start to glow. This is called a meteor.

Falling Stars If you have ever seen a "falling star", you were actually seeing a meteor

Meteorite Most of the original meteor burns up before it strikes the surface of the Earth Any leftover part that does strike the Earth is called a meteorite

Craters A meteorite can make a hole, or crater, in the ground when it hits it The larger the meteorite, the bigger the hole

Perseid Meteor Shower

Comets

Comets Comets are made up of material left over from when the Sun and the planets were formed About 100 billion comets orbit the Sun –Some comets orbit the Sun like planets.

Comets Comets are made of dirty ice, dust, and gas When a comet gets close to the Sun, part of the ice starts to melt Solar winds push the dust and gas released by the melting ice away from the comet. –Forms the comet's tail. Every time a comet comes close to the Sun, a part of it melts. –Over time, it will completely disappear.

Comets

A comet does not give off any light of its own. –Light is actually a reflection of our Sun's light –Sunlight bounces off the comet's ice particles in the same way light is reflected by a mirror.

Halley's Comet A few comets come close enough to the Earth for us to see them with our eyes. Halley's Comet, for example, can be seen from Earth every 76 years.

HALLEY’S COMET Halley's Comet Statistics Perihelion distance: AU Orbital eccentricity: Orbital inclination: ° Orbital period: 76.0 years Next perihelion: 2061 Diameter: 16 x 8 x 8 km

Close approaches to Earth 0.19 AU from Earth on 1835 October AU from Earth on 1910 May AU from Earth on 1986 April AU from Earth on 2061 July 29 HALLEY’S COMET

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