What is a Meteorite?

A meteorite is a fragment of rock from outer space that survives its fiery journey through the Earth’s atmosphere and lands on the Earth’s surface. Unlike meteors, which vaporize in the sky, meteorites make it all the way to the ground. They are the final stage in the life cycle of meteoroids that enter Earth’s atmosphere.

• Meteorites are debris from comets, asteroids, or sometimes even from the Moon or Mars.
• There are three main types of meteorites: stony, iron, and stony-iron.
  • Stony meteorites are made mostly of silicate minerals.
  • Iron meteorites consist largely of metallic iron-nickel.
  • Stony-iron meteorites have nearly equal amounts of metal and silicate.
• Meteorites can be as small as a pebble or as large as several meters across.
• They are generally denser than rocks found on Earth due to their high metal content.
• Many meteorites are magnetic because of their iron content.
• Despite thousands of meteors falling to Earth each day, meteorites are rare because most meteors burn up before reaching the surface.

Meteors and meteorites both provide valuable scientific information. A meteor is a flash of light in the sky. It happens when a meteoroid enters Earth’s atmosphere. As it falls, it heats up and burns, creating the light we see. A meteorite is what remains if the meteoroid doesn’t burn up completely. It hits the Earth’s surface. Meteorites are actual pieces of rock from space that we can find on Earth. In this article, we are going to learn the key differences between Meteor And Meteorite.