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Welcome to Science 12/13/10. Open your books to page 557-561 and use these pages to begin completing the outline you just received. Today’s Schedule 1. Schedule for the week 2. Science Folder/Notes Organized 3. Question of the Day 4. Discussion on Comets, Asteroids, & Meteors.
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Welcome to Science 12/13/10 • Open your books to page 557-561 and use these pages to begin completing the outline you just received. • Today’s Schedule • 1. Schedule for the week • 2. Science Folder/Notes Organized • 3. Question of the Day • 4. Discussion on Comets, Asteroids, & Meteors
Science Folder/Notes • These items should be in your Science Folder and should be studied for Friday’s Test 5 Key Concepts Paper • Big Bang Theory/Solar System Flow Chart • Sun Packet • Planet Packet • Comets, Asteroids, & Meteoroids Packet • Life Beyond Earth Packet • Word Wall List
Question of the Day • What is most likely the object that hit Earth in the picture below? A comet, asteroid, meteoroid, meteor, or meteorite? • Most likely it was an asteroid • Why study comets, asteroids, & meteoroids. • Because they threaten the existence of life on Earth • Ultra Science: Hitting Earth :
Comets • What is a comet? • Small body of ice, dust, and small rocky particles packed together that orbit the sun. “dirty snowballs” • Where do they come from? • Cold outer solar system. • Oort Cloud & Kuiper Belt
Why are comets important? • Comets are made of the “leftovers” from the process of planet formation. • Each comet is a sample of the early solar system.
A Comet’s Tail When a comet passes close to the sun, the heat from the sun evaporates the water in the comet creating a tail of gas and dust.
Comet Orbits • Like the planets, comets also orbit the sun in an ellipse. • A comet’s tail will point away from the sun as it gets closer to the sun. • Interactive Comet Animation
Asteroids • Large rocky objects that orbit the sun between Mars & Jupiter (asteroid belt) • Like comets, asteroids are the leftovers from the formation of the solar system.
Meteoroids • Meteoroid- small chunk of rock or dust. Could be a piece of a comet or asteroid • Meteor- meteoroid that enters Earth’s atmosphere & creates a streak (shooting star) • Meteorite- meteor that hits Earth’s surface
Impact of Asteroids & Meteoroids • The main theory on the extinction of the dinosaurs is that it was caused by an asteroid strike. • Could an asteroid hit again? • Yes • Will it happen again? • Yes • When will it happen? • 2014 & 2021 Possibly • Ultra Science: Hitting Earth : Bad Universe: Asteroid Impact Simulation Watch The Asteroid Threat: