S6E1.f. Compare and contrast comets, asteroids, and meteors

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S6E1.f. Compare and contrast comets, asteroids,
and meteors

• What are the characteristics of comets,
  asteroids, and meteors?
• How are they alike/different?

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Comets

• Where do they come from?
• ORIGIN
• Left over from formation of solar system
• Kuiper Belt
• Oort Cloud

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Size of Comets

• About the size of a mountain (w/out the tail)
• Tails can be 100 million km

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Composition of Comets

• Ice
• Dust
• Small rocky particles

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Parts/Vocabulary for Comets

• Coma cloud of dust gas
• Nucleus solid inner core
• Tail gas dust can been seen as the sun heats
  the comet blows it away from the sun
• Tail always points away from the sun

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Comets tail ALWAYS points away from the Sun
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Other details about Comets

• A.K.A. Dirty Snowballs
• Comet means Long-haired star

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Other details about Comets
Comets orbit in long, narrow, elliptical paths
around the Sun.
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Comets
Comet Hale-Bopp
Comet Halley
On July 23, 1995, an unusually bright comet
outside of Jupiter's orbit was discovered by Alan
Hale Thomas Bopp.
Should return 2061
In 1705 Edmond Halley predicted that the comet
seen in 1531, 1607, and 1682 would return in
1758.The comet did return as predicted and was
later named in his honor.
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Asteroids

• Where do asteroids come from?
• Origin
• Left over from formation of solar system
• Asteroid Belt between orbits of Mars Jupiter

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Size of Asteroids

• From lt 1km to
• gt 300km in diameter

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Composition of Asteroids

• What are asteroids made of?
• Rocky objects

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Other details about asteroids

• Scientists believe asteroids may have caused the
  extinction of the dinosaurs

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Other details about asteroids

• Asteroids move in very elliptical orbits
• The largest are Ceres, Pallas, Juno Vesta

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Meteors

• Where do meteors come from?
• Left over from formation of solar system
• Broken pieces of Comets or Asteroids!

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Size of meteors

• Smaller than comets or asteroids
• (since they come from broken pieces of these!)

The Perseid Meteor Shower (happens every August)
which has been observed for 2000 years!
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Composition of Meteors

• What are meteors made of?
• Rock dust

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Parts/Vocabulary for Meteors

• Meteoroid CHUNK of ROCK/DUST moving in SPACE
• Meteor STREAK of LIGHT made by meteoroid, burn
  up as they enter Earths atmosphere
• Meteorite a meteoroid that HITS Earth

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Other details about meteors

• A.K.A. Shooting Stars
• Meteor Showers happen regularly