What are meteors made of?

Question

What is a meteor called when it reaches the earth, and where is the largest one found on the earth?

Answer 1

meteors are objects that have intered the earths atmosphere and are heated up to vaporizing temperatures.  They nature of these objects are 3 fold.

there are iron meteors, common and about 10,000 enter the atmosphere each day. The are so common, that in the early days of radar, false blips were eventually tracked back to them.  Now days, (or up until the internet became common) there was what was referred to as meteor burst transmission. UHF signals were bounced up and when the meteor had produced enough ionized particles in its vaporizing, a detected signal would cause a high speed burst of radio waves capable of going around the earth. We now use satellites to do the same thing.

The other less common type of meteor is the rock type. It is usually a basalt type of rock if I remember correctly and when it enters the earth, if it strikes the earth, will refreeze within seconds and have a thick covering of ice on it.  I have never heard of this happening with an iron meteor. It seems they vaporized, but don't hold me to this.

the third type is ice crystals.  they can be large or small, but they enter the atmosphere at high speed and vaporized.  Recently a disgraced scientist was recognized for his pioneering research that shows that the water on earth is a result of ice entering the atmosphere that offsets water that is lost through our atmosphere. That is, we have a steady state hydrological cycle because of this.

In one post by Imaka (i think) they talked about the meteor bursting above the ground in the siberian area flattening hundreds of miles of forest.  About a month ago, geologist started looking at a lake that may be the location of the meteorite impact.

The investigation will be centered on sediment from the bottom of the lake and examination of strata around the lake looking for lifting caused by the impact.

When a meteor traveling at high speed strikes the earth, there is a transference of energy between the object and the earth that creates a substance called flour. It is earth pulp, a fine dust that is compressed under the crater.  The iron is basically vaporized and comes down in stone size and chips with the majority of the thing becoming tekelites. (small beads that solidify in the air and fall to the ground.)

The crater in Arizonia was heavily studied and no massive iron or rock core was ever found, but the substancial iron particles have given rise to the idea it was made of iron.

Answer 2

Meteors are the dirty, rocky tail end of comets.  Comets are best described as dirty snowballs with a tail of sediment debris.

Most meteors that hit the earth are made of some type of rock.

Of course the US and Soviet Union like to boast being hit by the biggest of this type of debris, so where the largest one is found is really not known for sure. But the truth is that most meteors burn up in our atmosphere before even hitting the ground.  Just think of the space shuttles with all those tiles on them, trying to insulate the aircraft from disintegrating from all that friction,which can reach over 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

Usually by the time the meteor hits the earth, it is a meteorite.

Answer 3

If it hits the earth it is called a meteorite.  

One of the most significant meteorite events in recent history destroyed hundreds of square miles of forest in Siberia on June 30, 1908. Across hundreds of miles, witnesses of the Tunguska event saw a ball of fire streak through the sky, suggesting the meteor entered the atmosphere at an oblique angle. It exploded, sending out hot winds and loud noises and shook the ground enough to break windows in nearby villages. Small particles blown into the atmosphere lit the night sky for several days. No meteorite was ever found, and for years many scientists thought the devastation was caused by a comet. Now, the prevailing theory holds that a meteor exploded just above the surface.

These sites give more information.  Hope this helps.

Answer 4

Meteors, for a lack of a scientific explanation, are made of all the spiteful ninjas in the universe, and when they reach Earth, they are called mincemeat, because the remaining pirates will destroy them all, if the midgets dont get there first. The largest mincemeat is found in the West Nile river bank, because the most epic ninja battles usually take place near water.

Answer 5

Meteors are made of ice crystals and dust particles that become solid rock after traveling through intense heat at amazing speeds. They are called meteorites after hitting Earth.

Arizona boasts the largest crater.