$~~~~$Do you know the difference between the terms meteoroid, meteor, and meteorite in astronomy? Many people find these words confusing. However, the difference is all about their 16 .
$~~~~$Meteoroids are far up in the sky. They are chunks of rock or metal that speed through space. Some are very large and may be hundreds of feet wide. Others 17 the size of a small stone. Most meteoroids travel around the sun in space and stay away from the Earth. However, sometimes a meteoroid will enter the Earth’s atmosphere. Friction with the atmosphere will cause it to 18 and burn while traveling at high speed. As a meteoroid begins to burn in the atmosphere, it leaves a streak of light. When this tail-like light is falling down toward the Earth, it is called a meteor, or a shooting star. Most meteors vaporize completely before they hit the ground. If any meteor 19 its fiery journey through the atmosphere and lands on Earth, it is called a meteorite. Large meteorites can cause great explosions and much destruction on the surface of the Earth. 20 , Barringer Crater in the American state of Arizona, measuring 1,200 m in diameter and some 170 m deep, was produced by a meteorite impact.