Asteroids, Meteors, Meterorites Flashcards
are found in our solar system, each with its own unique composition and characteristics
Asteroids, Meteoroids, Comets
have an outer layer of ice surrounding their core material
comets
the outer layer of comets turns to gas as it nears the sun, creating the? ___ and ____
coma and tail
have highly elliptical orbits, allowing them extended periods away from the sun
comets
mostly irregularly-shaped chunks of rock, with sizes ranging from a few tens of meters to hundreds of kilometers
asteroids
most come from the asteroid belt located between mars and jupiter
asteroids
sometimes collide with eachother, resulting in dents or breaking off into smaller pieces
Asteroids
____ are meteoroids that burn up as they enter Earth’s atmosphere, producing a streak of light
meteors
often call these as shooting stars
meteors
are pieces that break off from asteroids or debris left behind by comets
meteoroids
the fragments that land on earth
meteorites
T o F
most meteors burn up before landing on Earth
T
How big is an asteroid?
1-100+ km in diameter
How big is an meteoroid?
wide side range, can be as small as dust, but generally smaller than asteroid
How big is a comet?
1-10 km in diameter
______ ______ and ______ were formed around the same time as our solar system
asteroids, meteoroids, comets
have minimal to no impact on the Earth’s surface
meteorites
can potentially have significant and drastic effects on Earth
larger asteroids
small rocky solar object found in the asteroid belt between mars and Jupiter
Meteorite
when the molecules around the meteoroids rub against them, they start what?
Burning
When this burning meteoroid passes through the earths atmosphere it is called what,?
meteor
and when that meteor survives through the atmosphere and collides with the earth’s surface it is called a?
Meteorite
Some meteors burn brighter than the rest often known as?
Fireballs
some fireballs appear even brighter than the planet?
Venus
