Download Small Bodies in our Solar System

Small Bodies
in our Solar System
Comets
A small body of ice,
rock and cosmic dust
 “Dirty Snowball”
 These are samples
(left over) from the
beginning solar
system formation

Comet Tails
Dust Tail: when comet gets
close enough to Sun
 Ion Tail: electrically
charged particles
 Nucleus: center of
comet

Comet Orbits
Ellipse shape orbit
 Tail always points away
from Sun because of
Solar winds

Comet Origin

Comets come from the Oort Cloud and
Kuiper Belt
Asteroids
Small, rocky bodies
that revolve around
the Sun
 Vary in size and
shape
 Asteroid Belt:
Between Mars and
Jupiter

Meteoroids and Meteorites
Meteoroid: Similar to asteroids but
smaller
 If it enters our atmosphere and strikes the
ground it is called a Meteorite, it looks like
a streak or shooting star in the sky

Meteor Showers
Meteor Showers: certain times of year when
Earth passes through dusty debris and
large amount of meteors are in sight
Types of Meteorites
Stony
Metallic
Stony-Iron
Impacts
The surface of our Moon has more impact
craters because the Moon has no
atmosphere to these objects slow down or
“burn them”
 Atmosphere acts as a shield on Earth
 Earth craters not as visible because of
weathering, erosion and tectonic activity
 Large objects strike Earth every few
thousand years

Earth Craters
This is the Barringer Meteor Crater in
Arizona. The diameter is 1.2 kilometers,
and it is 49,000 years old
Lunar Craters
Torino Scale
A system that allows scientists to rate the
hazard level of an object moving toward
Earth