Asteroids, Comets, Meteors: A Guide
Updated: 12:32pm UK, Thursday 12 December 2013
Know your asteroid from your comet from your meteorite? See below for definitions of various Space objects.
:: Asteroid
A relatively small, inactive, rocky body orbiting the Sun.
:: Comet
A relatively small, at times active, object whose ices can vaporise in sunlight forming an atmosphere (coma) of dust and gas and, sometimes, a tail of dust and/or gas.
:: Meteoroid
A small particle from a comet or asteroid orbiting the Sun.
:: Meteor
The light phenomena which results when a meteoroid enters the Earth's atmosphere and vaporises; a 'shooting star'.
:: Meteorite
A meteoroid that survives its passage through the Earth's atmosphere and lands upon the Earth's surface.
Source: Nasa
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