• Question: what is the difference between a comet and a meteour?

    Asked by doriado999 to David, Luna, Mark, Melanie, Probash on 23 Mar 2011 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Luna Munoz

      Luna Munoz answered on 22 Mar 2011:

      Their main difference is where they are found. A comet is found in space and a meteor reaches the Earth’s atmosphere. A comet is also generally larger than a meteor. If a meteor collides with the Earth, then it is called a meteorite. There is a cool song about meteors.

    • Photo: David Pyle

      David Pyle answered on 23 Mar 2011:

      A meteor is a short-lived burst of light in the atmosphere which forms when particles (anything from dust grains to small meteoroids) burn up in the atmosphere. (Meteorites are the solid fragments that actually land on the surface). A comet is an ancient interplanetary body which is usually predominantly made of ices, dust and some rocky particles. The orbit of comets around the sun is often highly elliptical, so that many comets have very long return periods.

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