Asteroid, Meteor, Meteorite, and Comet: What’s the Difference? – Mental Floss

Adding up all of the mass in every asteroid in our entire solar system totals only less than the mass of our Moon. Despite their small physical size, however, these space rocks offer important clues as to how our solar system formed. The terms asteroid, meteor, meteorite, and even comet are often used interchangeably…but what is the difference?
What is an asteroid?
Asteroids are rocky objects smaller than planets that are left over from the formation of our solar system. When the cloud of ga…

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