
Asteroids, Comets, Meteors, and Meteorites

What is the difference?
- An asteroid is a rocky object that orbits the Sun. Asteroids are smaller than a planet, but they are larger than the pebble-size objects we call meteoroids.
- Comets are small icy dirtballs that orbit the Sun; comets are made of ice and dust while asteroids are made of rock).
- A meteor is a space rock—or meteoroid—that enters Earth's atmosphere, as it – burns up upon entering Earth’s atmosphere, it creating a streak of light in the sky (often called "shooting stars"). When Earth encounters many meteoroids at once, we call it a meteor shower.
- If a meteoroid survives its trip through Earth’s atmosphere and lands on the Earth’s surface, it is called a meteorite.
Banner images above, left to right:
Asteroid Bennu (NASA),
Fireball Meteor over Groningen the Netherlands (Robert Mikaelyan), and Comet 67P (ESA)
Now Discover all Our Near-Earth Object Asteroids and Comets using NASA Eyes.
https://eyes.nasa.gov/apps/asteroids/

Through the NASA’s Eyes on Asteroids visualization tool, you can now explore the asteroids and comets that approach Earth’s orbital neighborhood – and the spacecraft that visit these objects – with a click or a swipe. Thousands of asteroids and dozens of comets are discovered every single year, some of which – called near-Earth objects (NEOs) – follow orbits that pass through the inner solar system. With their numbers rising daily, these objects are tracked carefully by NASA-funded astronomers in case any might pose an impact threat to our planet. The daily-updated Eyes on Asteroids depicts the orbits of every known NEO, providing detailed information on those objects. Using the slider at the bottom of the screen, you can travel quickly forward and backward through time to see their orbital motions.

during the Perseid Meteor Shower in Spruce Knob West Virginia 2016,
credit: NASA /Bill Ingalls
Perseid Meteor Shower
The Perseids are the most popular meteor shower as they peak on warm August nights as seen from the northern hemisphere. The Perseids are active from July 17 to August 24. They will peak on August 11-12, 2021.

Asteroid Day
- Each year on June 30th
- https://asteroidday.org/
- UN International Asteroid Day resources
NISE Network hands-on activities

Exploring the Solar System: Asteroid Mining

Exploring the Solar System: Craters

Exploring the Universe: Space Guess Quest Game

NASA Resources
- Introductions
- NASA Space Place resources:
https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/menu/comets/
https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/asteroid
- NASA Space Place resources:
- Multimedia
- Astromaterials3D - a virtual library for exploration and research of
NASA's space rock collections including meteorites:
https://ares.jsc.nasa.gov/astromaterials3d/ - NASA Solar System Treks: https://trek.nasa.gov
- Asteroid Bennu Trek: https://trek.nasa.gov/bennu/
- Asteroid Vesta Trek: https://trek.nasa.gov/vesta/
- Astromaterials3D - a virtual library for exploration and research of
- Hands On Activities
-
Comet on a Stick
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/teach/activity/comet-on-a-stick/
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- Slide shows
- NASA What is that Space Rock slideshow
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/learn/slideshow/whats-that-space-rock/
- NASA What is that Space Rock slideshow

Featured NASA Missions and Programs
Lucy
- Launched in 2021, Lucy is visiting the Trojan Asteroids which share Jupiter's orbit around the Sun:
- Mission: https://www.nasa.gov/lucy
- Mission: http://lucy.swri.edu
- Lucy’s Journey animated video series https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_8hVmWnP_O0NJF7vd2ASOsqiaFURif_Z
NASA Asteroid Watch
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NASA Asteroid Watch tracks Near-Earth Object (NEO) comets and asteroids that drift close to Earth's orbital neighborhood:
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/asteroid-watch
OSIRIS-Rex
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OSIRIS-Rex traveled to near-Earth asteroid Bennu and is bringing a small sample back to Earth for study:
- https://www.nasa.gov/osiris-rex
Psyche
- Psyche mission to a unique metal asteroid orbiting the Sun between Mars and Jupiter:
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/psyche
Near-Earth Asteroid Scout (NEA Scout)
- Near-Earth Asteroid Scout (NEA Scout) is a small CubeSat spacecraft designed to fly by and return data from a near-Earth asteroid:
https://www.nasa.gov/content/nea-scout
Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART)
- Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) is a planetary defense-driven test to change the motion of an asteroid in space:
https://www.nasa.gov/planetarydefense/dart - Museum Informal Education Alliance resources (free log-in required)
https://informal.jpl.nasa.gov/museum/content/dart-impact-day-resources-informal-educators
Calendars to Explore the Night Sky
- New York Times astronomy events calendar and iCal/webcal link to add to iCloud, Google, or Outlook
- http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/sky-at-a-glance/
- https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/
- https://stardate.org/nightsky
- https://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/planner.cfm
- https://in-the-sky.org/newscal.php
- http://earthsky.org/tonight
- American Meteor Society: https://www.amsmeteors.org/meteor-showers/meteor-shower-calendar/

Finding STEM Experts
- See the "Space and Earth Science" section of Working with STEM Experts: A Guide for Educators in Museums and Other Informal Learning Settings