Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
Region VII, Central Visayas
Division of Bohol
Grade 8 Science
2nd Quarter
L E A R N I N G A C T I V I T Y No.
Activity Title: Meteors
Learning
Compare and contrast comets, meteors, and asteroids (S8ES-IIg-22)
Competency:
Learning Target: Cite similarities and differences of comets, asteroids and meteors.
Reference: Learner’s Manual pp. 160-162

A meteoroid is a broken up rock and dust from either a comet, asteroid,

the Moon, or from Mars. It can be as small as a grain of sand or as big as a
boulder. When it enters Earth’s atmosphere, the air in front of the meteoroid
heats up, causing materials to burn up. From Earth, these glowing materials
appear as a streak of light or a fast-moving bright object that appears to have
a tail just like a comet.

A meteoroid usually all burns up when it enters Earth’s atmosphere. But

when a fragment from the meteoroid survives and makes it to the ground, this
space rock fragment is now called a meteorite.

A meteor is a light phenomenon or a streak of light that occurs when a

meteoroid burns up as it enters Earth’s atmosphere. A meteor moves swiftly
and seems to fall on the ground. It “shoots” from a point in the sky, making
people think that it is a shooting or falling star. Also, a comet is difficult to
see with the unaided eye because it is farther from Earth compared to a
meteoroid entering Earth’s atmosphere.

Exercise:
How can you differentiate a meteor from a comet when viewed from
Earth?