meteor showers can create breathtaking displays of light.
The word meteor refers to a space rock that, often due to a collision between two asteroids, passes into Earth’s atmosphere. This sets it apart from a meteoroid, which remains solely in space, and a meteorite, which is a meteor that has successfully landed on the Earth.
As a meteor enters Earth’s atmosphere, it ignites. Most are completely incinerated before they hit the ground. The material composition can influence the color of the burn, with iron-rich meteors exhibiting a yellow hue. Meteors are also categorized by their behavior and size, which includes earthgrazers, fireballs, bolides, and superbolides.
