小行星及彗星.docVIP

Meteors: The term meteor comes from the Greek meteoron, meaning phenomenon in the sky. It is used to describe the streak of light produced as matter in the Solar System falls into Earths atmosphere creating temporary incandescence resulting from atmospheric friction. A meteoroid is matter revolving around the sun or any object in interplanetary space that is too small to be called an asteroid or a comet. Even smaller particles are called micrometeoroids or cosmic dust grains, which includes any interstellar material that should happen to enter our solar system. A meteorite is a meteoroid that reaches the surface of the Earth without being completely vaporized. Meteors come in a range of sizes, from dust-sized which we see as reflected sunlight in the orbital plane of the Solar System (called zodiacal light) to house-sized. When a meteor enters the atmosphere friction causes ablation of its surface (i.e. it burns up). If the meteor is small (fist-sized) it vaporizes before hitting the ground. If larger it survives to impact on the ground, although it will be reduced in size during entry into the atmosphere. About 25 million meteors enter the Earths atmosphere every day (duck!). Most burn up and about 1 million kilograms of dust per day settles to the Earths surface. Meteorites have proven difficult to classify, but the three broadest groupings are: Chondrites Pallasites Irons The most common meteorites are chondrites, which are stony meteorites. Radiometric dating of chondrites has placed them at the age of 4.55 billion years, which is the approximate age of the Solar System. They are considered pristine samples of early solar system matter, although in many cases their properties have been modified by thermal metamorphism or icy alteration. Other meteorite types which have been geologically processed are irons and pallasites. Iron meteorites are classified into thirteen major groups and consist primarily of iron-nickel alloys with minor amounts