Asteroids, Comets Meteors - NASA Solar System Exploration Our solar system’s small bodies – asteroids, comets, and meteors – pack big surprises These chunks of rock, ice, and metal are leftovers from the formation of our solar system 4 6 billion years ago
In Depth | Perseids – NASA Solar System Exploration The Perseids are one of the most plentiful showers with about 50 to 100 meteors seen per hour They occur with warm summer nighttime weather allowing sky watchers to comfortably view them Perseids are also known for their fireballs
RPS 3D Viewer - NASA Solar System Exploration NASA’s real-time science encyclopedia of deep space exploration Our scientists and far-ranging robots explore the wild frontiers of our solar system
In Depth | Asteroids - NASA Solar System Exploration Asteroids, Comets Meteors In Depth Introduction Asteroids, sometimes called minor planets, are rocky remnants left over from the early formation of our solar system about 4 6 billion years ago The current known asteroid count is:
In Depth | 2P Encke – NASA Solar System Exploration The Taurids, which peak in October November of each year, are fast meteors (65,000 mph or 104,607 kph) and are known for their fireballs Fireballs are meteors that are as bright or brighter than the planet Venus (seen in the morning or evening skies at around a visual magnitude of -4)
In Depth | 1P Halley – NASA Solar System Exploration Asteroids, Comets Meteors 1P Halley In 1986, the European spacecraft Giotto became one of the first spacecraft ever to encounter and photograph the nucleus of a comet, passing and imaging Halley's nucleus as it receded from the Sun Credit: Halley Multicolor Camera Team, Giotto Project, ESA | More about this image
Planet Compare - NASA Solar System Exploration NASA’s real-time science encyclopedia of deep space exploration Our scientists and far-ranging robots explore the wild frontiers of our solar system
The Sun By the Numbers – NASA Solar System Exploration The Sun is the star at the heart of our solar system Its gravity holds the solar system together, keeping everything – from the biggest planets to the smallest bits of debris – in its orbit
In Depth | Our Solar System - NASA Solar System Exploration Introduction The planetary system we call home is located in an outer spiral arm of the Milky Way galaxy Our solar system consists of our star, the Sun, and everything bound to it by gravity – the planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune; dwarf planets such as Pluto; dozens of moons; and millions of asteroids, comets, and meteoroids