MODULE 3:

Comets, Asteroids and

Meteors
 Near Earth Objects

a comet or an asteroid

with an orbit that crosses or comes

near the Earth’s orbit.
 Comets Icy objects

May contain other elements

like sodium or argon

Scientists theorized that the early impact of

comets on Earth brought liquid water to the planet
 Types of Comets
short-period comet
Short-period Kuiper Belt
comets take less
than 200 years
while long-period long-period comet
comets take over
200 years Oort Cloud
Origin of Comets Kuiper Belt
It is disc-shaped region - of
- named after Gerard
icy objects
short-period beyond Kuiper
cometsthe orbitfrom
come of Neptune
here --
billions of kilometers from our sun
- sometimes called the Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt
 Comet Halley
• The most famous comet of the 20th Century.
• Named after Edmond Halley
• The only known short-period comet
• It takes 75-79 years to orbit the Sun
• It last appeared in 1986 and
it is projected to appear in 2061.
 Oort Cloud Origin of Comets

- long-period comets
It is filled with icy
- named
objects after
composed
It takes 200 to
of Jan
ammonia, Oort
hundred millions water
of
and to
years methane.
complete
their orbit around
the sun
 Comet Hale-Bopp

• Sodium Tail – faint tail

observed from Comet
Hale-Bopp in 1997

Orbital period: 2,533 years

 Parts of a Comet
Comets
– gas and dust surrounding
the nucleus resulting from the
sublimation of the icy nucleus
coma
ion tail
dust tail

nucleus - icy core

 Tails get longer the closer a
comet gets to the Sun.

Tails are always directed away

from the Sun. Gas (ion) tail points
straight away from the Sun. Dust
tail curves toward orbital path.

Orbit of a comet
Asteroids
- rocky fragments consisting
- originate
- Asteroidsfrom the
areand
of silicates Main
also Asteroid
called
metals
Belt between
(nickel Mars
and and
iron)
minor planets or planetoidsJupiter
 Main
Asteroid
Belt
 Asteroid 2012 D14
• Made a very close approach to Earth as it orbited the
sun in February 15, 2013
 Chemical Composition of Asteroids
• Provide clues for studying the composition of Earth
and the other planets in the Solar System
• Explain how life on Earth was affected by impacts in
the past
 Alvarez Hypothesis
••The
Theydiscovery
proposedof high
that an
asteroid with
contents about 10 km
of Iridium
in diameter
(Rare made impact
Earth Element) in
with earth 65 million
oceanic sedimentary years
ago leading to the mass
layers in the different
extinction of plants and
parts of the world led
animals during the late part
geologists Luis Alvarez
of the Cretaceous period.
and his son Walter.
 Comparison between Ccmets
and Asteroids
Characteristic Comet Asteroid
Kuiper Belt and Main Asteroid
Origin
Oort Cloud Belt
Shape Varied/Irregular Varied/Irregular
Size range
1-10 (nucleus
of diameter 1-100++
only
(km)
 Comparison between Ccmets
and Asteroids
Characteristic Comet Asteroid
Chemical Ice (frozen water Silicates (olivine
Composition Frozen gases and pyroxene),
(ammonia, methane iron, nickel)
and carbon
dioxide); other
organic compounds
(carbon-containing
compounds)
 Comparison between Ccmets
and Asteroids
Characteristic Comet Asteroid
Orbit Highly More
elliptical rounded

Orbital 75- 1-100

period (yrs) 100,000++
Meteoroid, Meteor, and Meteorite
 Meteoroid
 is a broken up rock and dust from either a
comet, asteroid, the Moon, or from Mars.
 Meteor
 A meteor
A meteor is isa an
shower light phenomenon
annual light phenomenaor a streak
of light that
characterized occurs
by many when
meteors a meteoroid
appearing burns
in the sky in a
upperiod
short it enters Earth’s atmosphere.
of time.
 Some Examples of Famous Annual Meteor Showers

Name of the Constellation (where the meteor

Month Source of Meteoroid Meteor Shower shower seem to come from
August Comet Swift-Tuttle Perseid Perseus
October Comet 21 P/Giacobini- Draconoid Draco
Zinner
October Comet Halley Orionid Orion
November Comet Tempel-Tuttle Leonid Leo
November Comet ENcke Taurid Taurus
December Asteroid 3200 Geminid Gemini
Phaethon
 Meteorite
 When a meteoroid or part of a meteoroid survives passing
through Earth’s atmosphere, the space rock fragment that lands
on Earth’s crust is now called a meteorite.
Show where a meteoroid, meteor, and meteorite are most
likely to be found in the diagram below. Use the following
symbols for each:

Atmosphere (Earth)

Crust
 Outer Space

Atmosphere (Earth)

Crust
 Importance of Meteorites
• Important in studying the occurrence of
different elements and compounds on
Earth.
• Important in studying our mineral
resources which is an important industry
in any country
 Types of Meteorites
• Stony Meteorites
• Stony-iron Meteorites
• Iron Meteorites
Five Meteorites found in the Philippines
Meteorite Year of Place Discovered Type Mass
Discovery

Pampanga 1859 Pampanga Stony 10.5 kg

Paitan 1910 Paitan (Vigan), Stony 515 g

Ilocos

Calivo 1916 Western Visayas Stony 2.4 kg

Pantar 1938 Central Mindanao Stony 2.13 kg

Bondoc 1956 Bondoc Peninsula Stony- 888.6 kg

iron
 Impact Craters

• Bring minerals from space

• Caused Earth rocks in the area to
change in chemical composition
• Hold much potential for the
mining industry
 VALUING
• “Like a comet or meteor,
you should always build
your own magnificent light.
Glow more and create an
impact.”
-Sir Vladz Pamintuan