Meteors: Light from Comets and Asteroids

摘要: In studies of the oldest solar system bodies—comets and asteroids—it is their fragments—meteoroids—that provide most accessible planetary material for detailed laboratory analysis in form dust particles or meteorites. Some asteroids comets were visited by spacecrafts returned interplanetary samples to Earth, while missions Hayabusa 2 OSIRIX-REx visiting Ryugu Bennu are ongoing. However, lack representative opens space gain more knowledge from direct observations meteoroids. At collision with Earth’s atmosphere, meteoroids produce light phenomena known as meteors. Different methods can be used observe meteors, allowing us study small fragments, which would otherwise remain undetected. Numerous impressive meteor showers, storms meteorite impacts have occurred throughout recorded history now predicted analyzed much detail. By understanding dynamics, composition physical properties meteoroids, we able formation dynamical evolution system. This work presents an introduction astronomy, its fundamental processes examples current research topics.