Brad Wahlgren

CometsAre small cosmic bodies that have an

ellipsoidal orbit around the sunComposed of rock, dust, ice, and frozen

gassesComets do not become spherical because of

their low mass and gravityHave irregular shapes because of low mass

and gravityRange from 100 meters to 40 kilometers

across

Comets Continued Gasses found on comets include Carbon

Monoxide and Dioxide, Ammonia, Methane, Ethanol, and Ethane, etc

Comet TailsAs comets approach sun, solar radiation

causes particles from the comet to dissipate, and peel off of comet leaving trail of dust

Escaping gas and dust create quasi-atmosphere called coma

Comet TailsSolar Winds and Radiation exert pressure on

atmosphere causing tail to formTail and Coma make comet visible to EarthComas and tails vary in sizeTails can be up to 150 million km in lengthComas can be larger than planetsComet tails leave trails of debris which can

contribute to meteor showers

Orbit Patterns/Classifications of CometsHave ellipsoidal orbits which come close to

sun for periods of time, and extend outward towards outer planets

Classified by length of orbits

Orbit Classifications Short Period Comets: have orbits less than

200 years and are divided into two subclassesSubclasses: Jupiter Family: has orbit periods

of less than twenty years. Halley Family has orbits from 20-200 years

Long Period Comets: have orbit periods ranging from two hundred to several thousand years, and remain gravitationally bound to the sun, and therefore never go out of orbit

Classifications(continued)Single Apparation Comets: Have long

orbits periods, but these periods change due to gravitational pull by outer planets

All comet orbits are affected by the gravity of the giant planets they orbit by, and are constantly subject to change.

Comets can leave the solar system if they travel fast enough

Other exhaust themselves, and disintegrate, but others collide with celestial objects.

Asteroids Are small bodies that orbit the sunMillions of asteroids in the solar systemThough to be remnants of planetismals which

are small bodies that weren’t large enough to grow into planets

Many of the asteroids in the solar system are found in the asteroid belt

Makeup of Asteroids Several different types of asteroids and

within this classes of asteroids as far as physical makeup goes

Jupiter Trojans Near-Earth Asteroids-both explained laterC-type-makeup that consists mainly of carbonS-type-Mostly rock and stoneM-type-metallic

Groups of AsteroidsAsteroid Belt- Contains roughly 1.5 million

asteroids with a diameter larger than 1 km, and several million more that are smaller than that

Trojan Asteroids share orbit with a moon, or orbit very close to a planet. Many of these Trojans can be found near Jupiter so they have the name “Jupiter Trojans.”

Near-Earth Asteroids: pass close to Earth in their orbits

Physical MakeupThe composition of asteroids is very different

for each asteroid, and all can contain different minerals and elements.

Can contain iron, nickel, and other metalsFound to contain amino acids which is a

characteristic shared with cometsClassificationsCan be classified by orbits such as horseshoe

and quasi-satellites, or by their reflections of light.

Comparing Asteroids with CometsAfter research, I don’t think there are many differences

between the two. Both contain ice, rock, and minerals, and both orbit the sun. Each can be very large in size, and very small. However one of the main differences between the two is that comets have atmospheres that are created by their orbit, and their shapes are created by gravity, whereas asteroids are created by breaking of dwarf planets, etc. Comets also have their tails which are again, created by orbit, and comets change their physical makeup during orbit, but asteroids don’t. In addition, asteroids contain some of the same materials as comets such as amino acids, which is an interesting possible coincidence.

MeteroidsA Meteroid is a sand to bolder sized particle in

the solar system. Its visible path of light is called a Meteor, and if a meteroid falling to Earth survives the impact, it is called a meterite.”(quoted from Wikipedia).

Meteroids have very different physical makeups and can range from being 25% ice to metallic balls that are very dense

Also vary in size from being less than 1 meter in length to being 50 meters in length

All orbit the sun, but with varying speeds

MeteorsOccur most often in MesophereSeveral million daily occurencesCreated because of atmospheric pressure on

meteroid during entry to EarthThis creates a trail of gases and rocks which

create the visible meteor that one may see

Comparing with Comets and AsteroidsMeteroids/Meteors are different than comets

and asteroids in the sense that they are much smaller than comets and asteroids, at times only 1 meter in diameter. Comets and Asteroids can be very large, even one hundred meters apart. However Meteoroids can be similar to comets, because comets have tails and atmosphere created by pressure, and Meteoroids have meteors created during entry to Earth because of pressure, which is similar to a tail because it is a streaming cloud of gases and rock. All of the three things contain ice, metal, and gases which gives them one of their only similarities.

MoonsIs a body that orbits another cosmic body

larger or smaller than itself.Believed to be created by a collapsing area of

a newborn star, and most of the same time the same area that created the object its orbiting

Others created by collision of two proto-planetary objects

Physical MakeupMay have tectonic activity, and contain water,

methane, rock, iron, ect.

Different OrbitsMost moons have orbits in the same direction as

their planets rotation, and this is called a regular orbit.

Others have orbits that go against the rotation of their planets and these are called irregular orbits.

Moons can orbit things such as asteroids Shapes of MoonsMost moons have rounded ellipsoidal shapes, and

have very wide polar sides. Smaller moons have egg shapes, etc, but no moon is perfectly spherical

Comparing Moons, with Asteroids, Comets, and MeteoroidsAsteroids, Comets, and Meteoroids all orbit the

sun, but moons orbit planets and larger or smaller bodies, even satellites. However the definition of a moon is a body that orbits a larger and smaller body, so the three bodies could be considered moons. Geologically, all have ice, dust, and rock. Moons are larger than meteroids most of the time, and larger than most comets and asteroids, but some comets and asteroids are larger than moons. Moons have no atmosphere like a comet or tail like feature like a comet or meteor.

Lunar PhasesIs how we see the moon from Earth, and how

much of the moon is being illuminated by the sun, or in shadow

½ the moon is lit by the sunNew Moon happens when the moon is

between the Earth and the SunFull Moon is when the whole sunlit portion of

the moon is facing usAt a half moon the moon is at a 90 degree

angle with the Sun and Earth so we see half the moon in light and half in shadow

Moon’s Effects On EarthTides: Created by the Moon’s gravitational pull from

one side of the Earth to the other. The two tidal bulges are formed, and dragged along the Earth’s surface as it rotates faster than the Moon.

Solar Eclipses: Created when the Moon, Earth, and Sun are all in a straight line. During a solar eclipse, the moon is between the Sun and Earth and the Earth is plunged into darkness.

Time: The moon helped the primitive man tell timeFolklore: The moon’s orbit helped influence

storytelling and created stories such as the Werewolf which influenced culture throughout history.

Second MoonAffect on the Tides: If there was a second

moon, it would/ could seriously affect how the tides function as far as their strength goes. If the second moon was as large as the first, the gravitational pull on Earth would seriously increase the distance the ocean went inland at high tide, and affect the distance it went back in low tide.

Lunar Eclipses would be affected if there was a second moon, because they could both be in the way of the sun blocking it out.

Moon Distance Increased/DecreasedThe affect on the tides would be affected if the

distance was decreased because the moon’s gravitational pull would be less intense on the Earth because of the distance away, so the tides would be less powerful, or more powerful if the distance was increased.

If the moon was closer to the Earth, it might totally block out all light from the sun during a solar eclipse\

The Space Race would have been affected because it wouldn’t of taken as advanced technology to reach the moon so Russia may have gotten to the moon first.