1. Meteors and Comets

2. What is a planet? The Planet Test
A planet must be nearly round
A planet must orbit a central star
A planet has to be big enough to have cleared out its orbit of other objects

3. Keplar’s First Law of Motion
How do planets move?
Keplar’s First Law of Motion
All planets move in an elliptical orbits having the sun as one focus. (Law of Orbits)

4. Comets Comets are made out of dust and ice
Comets come from the Kuiper Belt and the Oort Cloud
A comet’s coma, or tail can be behind it or in front of it
Comets are like frozen snowballs
Comets look like asteroids except for the tail

5. Comets
Scientists try to predict when comets will come too close to Earth
Sometimes comets collide with planets and their moons
Haley’s Comet is the most famous comet, it passes by Earth every 76 years – the last time it passed by Earth was in 1986
When Earth crosses the path of a comet, leftover dust and ice can create increased numbers of meteors in what's known as a meteor shower.

6. Comets They travel around the Sun in an orbit.
Are warmed up as they approach the Sun. This causes the Comet to form a head and tail. The head is the cloud-like mass we see in the front. The tail is the trailing part which is made up of small particles and ice.
Are usually named after the person who discovered them.
Halley's Comet (above) and Hale-Bopp Comet (right) are two famous comets.

7. Meteors A meteoroid is a small particle from a comet or asteroid
A meteor is much smaller than an asteroid
When a meteor hits the ground its called a meteorite
A meteor is the streak of light from the meteoroid

8. Meteors
38,000 meteorites have been found on Earth so far, from all over the world, but most are found in the hot desert or in freezing cold Antarctica
There are three main types of meteorites: stony, iron and stony-iron
Meteors enter the Earth's atmosphere on a regular basis

9. The End

10. Questions What are comets made of? Where in space are comets formed?
What is the MOST famous comet? How often does this comet pass by Earth?
How are meteor showers formed?
What is a meteor?
How are comets and meteors DIFFERENT?
What are the three main types of meteorites?
Where do most meteorites fall on Earth?