Oops, 1 More Thing

Posted by Kurt Maurer on Oct 7, 2004

Meteors DO make it to the ground here and there... of course. Those dudes are the ones that hit at angles kinda sorta like what we calculate for our returning spacecraft. They mostly come into out hands pretty much 98% burned up. And never forget I am trying to keep all this really simple, in case you're a scientist.

This is, by the way, why samples of comets are so desperately wanted. Comets are often described as "dirty snowballs", which means they are combinations of various ices, dirt (rocky stuff), and metallic particles. The Big Thing about comets is, they haven't been burned, roasted, pressure-cooked, or any of that nonsense (yet). And that is why they are referred to as primordial. It means, roughly, pure. And it is considered to be the stuff of which all planets and stars (etc.) are ultimately made of.

Can you tell I'm going crazy from not being able to go to the star party yet?

Cheers, Kurt

In Response to: More About Meteors by Kurt Maurer on Oct 7, 2004

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