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Grades 3–5 · Earth & Space

What is the difference between a shooting star and a meteorite?

A shooting star is not a star falling from the sky. The bright streak is a meteor, produced when material from space enters Earth’s atmosphere at high speed. Before entry, the small space object is called a meteoroid.

G030 visual explanationA space object, a light streak and a surviving rock; meteoroid in space; meteor: luminous event; meteorite: surviving material; Many small entering objects leave no rock on the ground.A space object, a light streak and a surviving rockmeteoroid in spacemeteor: luminous eventmeteorite: surviving materialMany small entering objects leave no rock on the ground.

In the diagramA space object, a light streak and a surviving rockmeteoroid in spacemeteor: luminous eventmeteorite: surviving materialMany small entering objects leave no rock on the ground.

A meteoroid in space produces a luminous meteor during atmospheric entry; an example surviving fragment reaches the ground as a meteorite.

During entry, the object interacts strongly with the air. Its surface heats and loses material, while surrounding gas can also glow. The resulting light traces a short path across the sky for someone watching from the ground.

Many small objects break apart or lose all their material before reaching the surface. If a piece survives the trip and lands, that surviving piece is called a meteorite. The light and the landed rock are therefore different things.

Scientists study meteorites for clues about the solar system’s materials and history. Finding one does not mean a star has landed. It means that some material traveling between worlds survived a journey through our atmosphere.

About this explanation

Starting knowledge: Know that Earth has an atmosphere and that small rocky objects travel in space.

Sources

  • NASA — Meteors and Meteorites: Facts
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