OUT OF THIS WORLD: COMETS
ASTEROIDS, AND METEOROIDS
By Mercury Williams
Edited by __________________
In the Milky Way galaxy lies our
solar system, a region composed
of the sun, eight planets, and
moons. Most people disregard
the smaller celestial bodies called
asteroids, comets, and
meteoroids that fill our solar
system.
COMETS
Comets, commonly known as “Dirty
Snowballs” are composed mainly of
ice, dust, rock, and frozen gases
that do not have any definite shape.
Comets appear to be fireballs
of light zooming through the
sky. Comets, however, do not
produce their own light. Gas
and dust particles reflect the
sun’s light.
In 1986, scientists all over the world
awaited the arrival of Halley's comet.
This would be the only opportunity in
history to gather information about
such a comet, because its motion is
extremely unpredictable.
ASTEROIDS
Asteroids are fragments of rock
with an irregular shape that orbit
the sun. They are too numerous
to be considered planets.
Most asteroids can
be found orbiting the
sun between Mars
and Jupiter. This
region is known as
the asteroid belt.
Asteroids may be made of rocky
material, and can contain metals and
other elements. Most are small, but
some are larger than 300 km across.
The largest are Ceres, Vesta,
Hygiea, and Pallas.
METEOROIDS
Meteoroids, bits of rock and metal,
are formed from asteroids and
comets. These small celestial
objects move throughout the solar
system.
Meteors are also know as
shooting stars. When a
meteoroid enters the atmosphere,
friction with the air creates heat,
and produces a streak of light.
This is called a meteor.
Meteorites are meteoroids that
pass through the atmosphere
and hit the Earth’s surface before
they burn up. Meteorites are
classified based on their
composition.
Students,
I’m having a hard time concluding
this PowerPoint. Please write a
summary.
Thanks-
Mercury