Asteroid Comet facts

While investigating facts about Asteroid Comet Meteor and Asteroid Comet Difference, I found out little known, but curios details like:

70,000 years ago, a nomadic star came within 1 light-year of the Sun. And research suggests this close pass sent dozens of comets and asteroids tumbling out of the solar system.

how big was the asteroid/comet that caused the extinction of the dinosaurs?

Jupiter is a "cosmic vacuum cleaner." Its gravitational influence causes comets and asteroids to collide with it. The rate of impacts on Jupiter is about 2000-8000X higher than the rate on Earth. Without Jupiter, the probability of asteroid impacts with the inner planets would be much greater.

What happens when a comet or an asteroid hits earth?

In my opinion, it is useful to put together a list of the most interesting details from trusted sources that I've come across answering what is the difference between an asteroid and a meteor and a comet. Here are 24 of the best facts about Asteroid Comet Or Meteor Worksheet and Asteroid Comet Hazards I managed to collect.

what is the difference between a comet and an asteroid?

1. Mercury's surface is covered in craters due to the impact of asteroids and comets. Mercury does not have the ability to heal as many other planets are able to do via geological processes.

2. 40% of Ganymede's surface is covered with highly cratered dark regions that are believed to be from heavy impact by comets and asteroids that date back to around 4 billion years ago.

3. The Moon's surface contains craters due to comets and asteroids that have hit its surface.

4. There is a scientific theory in which life originated from somewhere else in space and was transmitted to Earth by a comet or asteroid.

5. There is a proposed planetary defense plan to use a high energy laser network as to destroy incoming dangerous space debris such as asteroids, comets, and more.

6. About the Greater Green River Intergalactic Spaceport, a tiny airstrip near Green River, Wyoming. In 1994, a bill was passed stating that any alien from Jupiter who needed refuge from asteroids (an apparent reference to Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9) could come to Green River, hence the name.

7. In 1998, three scientists hypothesized that 200-million years ago, the Earth captured a fragmented asteroid or comet which decayed and came crashing to Earth in a multiple impact event that left craters in North Dakota, Manitoba, Quebec, France, and Ukraine

8. About martian meteorites, rocks ejected from Mars by the impact of an asteroid or comet, to finally land on Earth.

9. Centaurs are small celestial bodies or minor planets that orbit the Sun between Jupiter and Neptune that have unstable orbits and act like asteroids or comets.

Why asteroid belt not a planet?

You can easily fact check why is there an asteroid belt by examining the linked well-known sources.

Tabby's Star (KIC 8462852) known for its unusual luminosity that may be a result from comets, a new asteroid belt, or even an alien civilization

We are not sure of where water come from / how or planet got to be covered with oceans, lakes and rivers and it could have been brought into earth by an asteroid or a comet. - source

Before we landed on a comet, JAXA sent a landing orbiter and a lander to an asteroid, gathered rock samples, and returned to earth. - source

In 1992, A scientist claimed that humans had a greater chance of being killed by a comet or asteroid than dying in an airplane crash. Mathematical calculations confirm that every individual faces a 1-in-5,000 chance of being killed by some type of extraterrestrial impact (p.48-49 source)

There is such thing as a comet-asteroid. They are called Centaurs and they can have a highly eccentric orbit or a almost regular orbit. There have been many reports of comas presenting themselves on Centaurs. - source

What happens when a comet or an asteroid hits earth?

KIC 8462852, A.K.A. the WTF Star, known for its unusual luminosity that may be a result from comets, a new asteroid belt, or even an alien civilization

How is a comet different from an asteroid?

Anything obtained in space and brought back to earth is the legal property of whoever obtained it, and big tech/space companies are already trying to salvage asteroids, meteors, and comets for valuable elements

During the process of searching for Pluto, astronomer Clyde Tombaugh also discovered a globular star cluster, several clusters of galaxies, several star clusters, a comet, and nearly eight hundred asteroids

A planet's rings are made from pieces of ice, rocks and, dust. They are formed when asteroids,comets, or any other large objects pass too close to the planet and are torn apart by theplanet's gravity.

The first person on earth to make a trillion dollars will likely be an asteroid miner, someone who exploits raw materials from asteroids, comets, and minor planets, both Elon Musk & Jeff Bezos are heavily invested the field

We don't just launch satellites around Earth, but also the Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, a few asteroids, a comet and the Sun.