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Meteors

Meteors, also known as shooting stars, are pieces of dust and debris from space that burn up in Earth's atmosphere, where they can create bright streaks across the night sky. When Earth passes through the dusty trail of a comet or asteroid's orbit, the many streaks of light in the sky are known as a meteor shower. Particularly large chunks of material can create an extra-bright fireball streak, but most meteors are still small enough to entirely burn up in Earth's atmosphere. If a meteor makes it to Earth it's known as a meteorite. Before they hit atmosphere the objects are called meteoroids. 

Related Topics: Asteroids, Aurora Borealis, Comets 

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A wispy layer of mesospheric clouds illuminates Earth's atmosphere in this photo taken from the International Space Station. European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano tweeted this photo from space, writing, "Mesospheric clouds tinge the sunset, south of the Indian Ocean." Mesospheric clouds, also known as noctilucent clouds, form 47 to 53 miles (76 to 85 kilometers) above Earth's surface, an altitude where water vapor can freeze into clouds of ice crystals. For comparison, the International Space Station orbits at an average altitude of 250 miles (400 km).

Pictures from Space! Our Image of the Day

By SPACE.com Staff

A wispy layer of mesospheric clouds illuminates Earth's atmosphere in this photo taken from the International Space Station.

An artist's depiction of the early solar system. In the inset, small particles stick together to form larger particles.

Tiny Space-Rock Particles Could Hold Secrets to Early Solar System

By Meghan Bartels

Small chunks of mineral studding the interiors of space rocks could help scientists pinpoint when the solar system began to form.

The Wedderburn meteorite was first discovered in 1951.

Extraterrestrial Mineral Never Before Seen on Earth Found Inside a Famous Meteorite

By Yasemin Saplakoglu

A never-seen-before extraterrestrial mineral was lurking inside a meteorite found nearly 70 years ago.

A bright-pink Perseid meteor shines above an old shipwreck on the coast of New Jersey in this photo by Jeff Berkes. He captured this photo early Sunday morning (Aug. 11), or about two days before the peak of the meteor shower.

Perseid Meteor Shower 2019 Dazzles Skywatchers Despite a Bright Moon

By Hanneke Weitering

Viewing prospects for this year's Perseid meteor shower were not ideal, but that didn't stop the annual "shooting star" display from putting on a great show!

Amazing Photos of the Perseid Meteor Shower 2019

By Hanneke Weitering

The annual Perseid meteor shower, one of the most highly anticipated meteor showers of the year, peaked overnight on Aug. 12-13. See photos of the spectacular "shooting star" display here!

This amazing view of a Perseid meteor was captured by amateur astronomers Stojan Stojanovski, Kristijan Gjoreski and Igor Nastoski of the Ohrid Astronomy Association in Ohrid, Macedonia during the peak of the Perseid meteor shower on Aug. 12-13, 2015.

Perseid Meteor Shower 2019: When, Where & How to See It

By Sarah Lewin

Several Perseid meteors dash across the sky above Italy's Castel Santa Maria in this photo by astrophysicist Gianluca Masi of the Virtual Telescope Project taken during the peak on Aug. 12-13, 2018.

How to Watch the 2019 Perseid Meteor Shower Live Online

By Elizabeth Howell

One of the year's brightest meteor showers is about to take flight. If you face cloudy or light-polluted skies at home, however, never fear — the Perseids will also be streamed online.

A NASA camera located near Tucson, Arizona, captured this image of a spider and a Perseid meteor on Aug. 5, 2019.

Skywatching Spider Photobombs 2019 Perseid Meteor Shower

By Meghan Bartels

How do you spot a "shooting star"? Well, you don't look for eight legs; that's for sure.

Dozens of Perseid meteors appear to sprint toward the Milky Way over Colorado's Great Sand Dunes National Park in this composite taken by astrophotographer Cody Limber during the peak of the Perseid meteor shower on Aug. 12, 2018.

The 2019 Perseid Meteor Shower Peaks Soon: Here's What to Expect

By Joe Rao

August is regarded as "meteor month" with the appearance of one of the best displays of the year: the annual performance of the Perseid meteor shower, the most famous of all meteor showers.

Compilation of 2010 Perseid Events Over Huntsville, Alabama

Top 10 Perseid Meteor Shower Facts

By Robert Roy Britt

The annual Perseid meteor shower peaks every August and is often the most dazzling meteor display of the year.

Inside the American Museum of Natural History's refurbished Hall of Meteorites.

Moon Rocks and Lunar Meteorite Are the Stars in This NYC Exhibit

By Meghan Bartels

The American Museum of Natural History has just finished sprucing up its Halll of Meteorites to highlight a new era of sample-return missions and a new museum acquisition, a lunar meteorite.

Astrophotographer Jim Denny took this photo of a Southern Delta Aquarid meteor on July 30, 2014, in Kekaha, Kauai, Hawaii.

Look Up! Dazzling Double Meteor Shower Peaks Tonight

By Chelsea Gohd

Tonight, the Southern Delta Aquariids and the Alpha Capricornids meteor showers will share the night sky in a spectacular double meteor shower.

A meteor streaks across the sky.

Catch a Shooting Star with 2019's Summer Meteor Showers

By Joe Rao

Anyone gazing at the summer night sky for even a short length of time is likely to spot a few "shooting stars" darting across the sky.

Locals crows around a crater created by the possible football-sized meteorite that fell in a rice field in the Mahadeva Village of the eastern state of Bihar in India.

Football-Size Meteorite May Have Landed in an Indian Rice Field

By Yasemin Saplakoglu

The strange magnetic rock was the size of a football.

A chunk of clay, attached to a rod, deforms in rushing water as part of one experiment.

Earth Is Littered with Mysterious Space-Cones, and Now We Know Why

By Rafi Letzter

A peculiar atmospheric process is sculpting meteorites into surprising shapes as they fall.

The Western University All-Sky Camera Network in London, Canada, captured this image of a fireball over southern Ontario and Quebec on July 24, 2019, at 4:44 a.m. EDT (0844 GMT).

Fireball! Incredible Video Shows Meteor Streaking Across Canadian Sky

By Elizabeth Howell

A fireball as bright as the full moon streaked across the Canadian province of Ontario early Wednesday (July 24), possibly throwing meteorites to Earth along the way.

Researcher Mike Meyer mounted several microtektites on micropaleontology slides. These microspherules are likely proof that a meteorite struck the ocean near the state of Florida a couple of million years ago.

These Glass Pearls from Clam Fossils Hint at Ancient Meteorite Crash in Florida

By Doris Elin Salazar

Tiny glass pearls found inside fossilized clams are likely a sign that a meteorite made a sizeable splash near the ancient Florida peninsula, according to a team of researchers.

An artist's depiction of meteorites falling to the surface of early Earth.

Deadly Cyanide Might Help Us Better Understand Early Life

By Elizabeth Howell

Even though cyanide is a deadly poison for humans, scientists have found that its presence in meteorites may help us to better understand life itself.

A computer simulation shows middle-altitude clouds on Mars.

Meteor 'Smoke' May Spawn Cotton Candy Clouds on Mars

By Nola Taylor Redd

Cotton candy clouds in the Martian middle atmosphere may owe their life to dying meteors.

A time-lapse image of the Perseid meteor shower — the Beta Taurids will be much more difficult to see.

Did the Beta Taurid Meteor Shower Cause the 1908 Tunguska Explosion?

By Joe Rao

Next month, astronomers will scan the Beta Taurid meteor shower in search of asteroids that might someday threaten a potentially catastrophic collision with Earth.