Comets, Asteroids, and Meteors

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Comet Noun

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[kom-it]

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Comet

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A celestial body of ice, rock, and frozen gases that orbits the Sun in a highly elongated path.

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Sublimate Verb

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[sub-li-meyt]

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Sublimate

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The process where a substance transitions directly from a solid to a gas, without passing through a liquid phase.

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Coma Noun

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[koh-muh]

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Coma

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The fuzzy, cloud-like atmosphere that forms around a comet's nucleus as solar radiation causes its ices to sublimate.

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Oort Cloud Noun

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[awrt kloud]

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Oort Cloud

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A theoretical, distant spherical cloud of icy objects and comets believed to surround the entire solar system.

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Kuiper Belt Noun

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[kahy-per belt]

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Kuiper Belt

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A disc-shaped region of icy bodies, including dwarf planets and comets, located beyond the orbit of Neptune.

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Halley's Comet Noun

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[hal-eez kom-it]

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Halley's Comet

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A famous short-period comet that is visible from Earth with the naked eye approximately every 75 to 76 years.

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Asteroid Noun

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[as-tuh-roid]

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Asteroid

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A large, rocky or metallic object, smaller than a planet, that orbits the Sun, primarily in the asteroid belt.

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Asteroid Belt Noun

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[as-tuh-roid belt]

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Asteroid Belt

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The region in the solar system, located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, where most asteroids are found.

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Near-Earth Asteroid (NEO) Noun

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[neer-urth as-tuh-roid]

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Near-Earth Asteroid (NEO)

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An asteroid whose orbital path brings it into close proximity with Earth, posing a potential collision hazard.

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Trojans Noun

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[troh-juhns]

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Trojans

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A group of asteroids that share an orbit with a larger planet at stable gravitational points, known as Lagrange points.