Question

How do meteorites form?

Answer 1

Hint: Meteoroids are rocks or blocks of iron orbiting the sun, just like planets, asteroids and comets. Meteoroids, especially tiny particles called micrometeoroids, are extremely common throughout the solar system. They orbit the sun between the rocky inner planets and the gaseous giants that make up the outer planets.

Complete answer: Many meteorites are formed from a collision of asteroids that rotate around the sun between the tracks of Mars and Jupiter in the region called the asteroid belt. As asteroids break into each other, they produce loose debris- meteoroids. Other meteorites are remains that comets shed as they travel through space. When the comet approaches the sun, the core of the comet sheds gas and dust. A dusty tail may contain hundreds of meteorites. The meteoroids laid by the comet are usually in orbit together. This is called the meteoroid stream. A very small percentage of meteorites are rocky pieces, which break away from the moon and other celestial bodies. When the meteor passes through the Earth's atmosphere, it catches heat because of air resistance. Heat causes gases around meteorites to start shining brightly. It is sometimes called a meteor. Most of the meteorites entering the Earth's atmosphere crumble before they reach Earth. The pieces that do hit the surface of the Earth are called meteorites.

Note:An asteroid is a large rock body in the orbit of the sun. Whereas a meteoroid is comparatively a small rock or particle that orbits around the Sun. If the asteroid or meteorite survives through the atmosphere and reaches the earth’s surface, then it’s called a meteorite.