In this lesson, students learn some basic facts about asteroids in our solar system. The main focus is on the size of asteroids and how that relates to the potential danger of an asteroid colliding with the Earth. Students are briefly introduced to the destruction that would ensue should a large asteroid hit, as it did 65 million years ago.

This 24 minute planetarium show teaches about meteors, meteorites, asteroids, and comets. The show was created for fulldome theaters, but is also available on DVD to be shown in flat version for TVs and computer monitors, and can be freely viewed online. It shows the effects of the Chixulub and Tungusta events, plus the Pallasite impact that resulted in the Brenham meteorite fall, and describes ways that asteroid hunters seek new objects in the solar system, and how ground penetrating radar is used to find meteorites that have survived to the Earth's surface. Narrated by astronaut Tom Jones, it also discusses ways that humans might try to deflect an asteroid or comet that is on a collision course with Earth. The show was created for informal science venues (digital planetariums); it is also useful as supplemental material for middle school science. Impact Earth is available for free if presented directly from the Space Update site (widescreen or fisheye views linked from YouTube). Otherwise, a DVD of the show can be purchased for $10.

Students will experimentally learn how meteoroids are formed. They will melt a comet, learning about its composition, and break apart asteroids. The students learn the differences between meteoroids, meteors and meteorites and how the impact of asteroids/meteoroids can affect life on Earth.

Today Phil helps keep you from ticking off an astronomer in your life by making sure you know the difference between a meteor, meteorite, and meteoroid. When the Earth plows through the stream emitted by a comet we get a meteor shower. Meteors burn up about 100 km above the Earth, but some survive to hit the ground. Most of these meteorites are rocky, some are metallic, and a few are a mix of the two. Very big meteorites can be a very big problem, but there are plans in the works to prevent us from going the way of the dinosaurs.

Chapters:
Introduction: Meteors
Shooting Stars, Meteoroids, Meteors, or Meteorites?
Kinetic Energy
Compression & Ablation
Sporadic Meteors
Meteor Showers
Bolides
Classifying Meteorites
Very Big Meteorite = Very Big Problem
Review

This is a 30 minute lesson where students will be able to:
1. Describe the size, composition, and motion of meteors and comets.
2. Discuss the similarities and differences in comets and meteors.
3. Explain:
a. what happens to meteors as they fall through the atmosphere
b. why comet debris is observed as a meteor shower from the Earth
c. how the planet's gravitational forces affect a comet's orbit.
d. why we see a comet's tail.
e. why a comet disintegrates when it gets close to the sun.

This field investigation involves student dropping various objects into various mediums to find answers to questions that they propose, dealing with meteors and craters.