Hey, smarty pants, how many of you enjoy a good rain shower?
Ah, I'm getting a mix of opinions here.
Some of you like the sound of rain or splashing in puddles, or even the smell after it rains.
But yeah, rain showers can spoil birthday parties, play dates, sports games, and more.
However, there is one type of shower that almost everyone can enjoy.
I'm singing a day - No, no, no, not that.
I'm talking about a more cosmic shower.
Look out! It's raining rocks!
From space! Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, there's no need to worry about these space showers at all.
They won't hit anyone, most times.
Ahh. Smarty pants, do you know what we call the space objects that cause showers high above the Earth?
Are they A, meteorites, B, meteors, or C, meteoroids?
Hey, Petey, I think he's talking about us again.
Oh, this guy again?
Ah, come on, I already told you all so I know about asteroids for your asteroids episode.
No, no, no, no, you misheard me.
I didn't say asteroids like you two.
I said C, meteoroids.
I don't get it, Petey, what's so special about meteoroids?
Beats me, Star. Well, for one thing, meteoroids are the things that cause meteor showers.
Why, is she thinking you're an expert on space rocks now?
Ooh, look at Mr. Big Shot.
What you gonna do now?
Tell us some cool facts about stuff that falls from the sky?
That's exactly what I was about to do.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, you already said how we asteroids smacked into Earth and wiped out the dinosaurs.
Earth's fault, by the way.
Who put that planet right in our path?
What else is there to talk about?
Plenty since meteoroids are not just asteroids.
A really smart guy, what's the difference?
Good question. Smarty Pence, how are meteoroids different than asteroids and what's the difference between meteoroids, meteors, and meteorites?
And why do meteor showers happen around the same time each year?
You're really gonna answer all those questions?
You bet, it's time for another whiff of science on...
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Tell me, smarty pants, have you ever seen a shooting star?
Next time you're outside at night, someplace where there isn't much light, search for one in the sky.
Look closely, because shooting stars move very quickly.
But luckily, they happen a lot, several times every hour.
The thing is, that object that looks like a star shooting through the sky isn't a star at all.
Huh? It's actually what?
What is it? A comet?
A meteor? Or Captain Marvel?
Did you say a meteor?
That's right. Meteors are meteoroids that enter the Earth's atmosphere and burn up in the sky.
If the meteor somehow survives and hits the ground, they become what scientists call meteorites.
Ah. Meteors, meteoroids, meteorites.
Eh, it's all Greek to me.
That's right. It is.
The phrase, it's all Greek to me, usually means you don't understand something, but in this case, the three words, meteors, meteoroids, and meteorites, actually come from Greek.
They come from the Greek word meteoron, which means a thing high up.
And that can be anything high up, including clouds, which is why the study of weather is called what?
Did you say meteorology?
Good smarting. Okay, okay, enough with this smarty talk narrator.
I think my guy here actually meant that he doesn't get the whole meteor, meteoroid thing.
That's right. I don't.
But before you start thinking us asteroids ain't smart just because we got rocks for brains, let me tell you.
What I'm saying is, yeah, yeah, I lost my thought.
Whatever. So what's the deal with these meteoroids?
Like where do they come from?
Smarty Pants, do you know?
Is it A, the moon? B, Mars?
C, comets? Or D, busted up asteroids?
There he is, making fun of asteroids again.
Be nice narrator. Hey, it's not my fault that you guys are constantly smacking into things and busting up.
What? You're saying we're clumsy now?
Not clumsy, but I'll just look at the moon in all its craters.
Many of those were caused by asteroid strikes.
Whoa, whoa. Once again, the moon got in our way.
Yeah, but you guys have crashed into Mars too!
And each other! And when these collisions happen, little pieces break off and fly through space on their own.
Hey, look at me. That little piece of moon, planet, or asteroid becomes a meteoroid.
What? Who? I'm flying through space.
Oh, it's like a baby asteroid.
I think it is my greatest.
And comet pieces become meteoroids too.
So Smarty Pants, to answer that question from before about where do meteoroids come from, the answer is all of them.
The moon, Mars, comets, or busted up asteroids?
And when these meteoroids hit the earth's atmosphere, they become meteors, creating a bright flare that looks like a shooting star.
Smarty Pants, how big do you think a meteor has to be for you to see it fly by?
Does it need to be as large as A, a mountain?
B, a house? C, a basketball?
Or D, a piece of dust?
Believe it or not, the answer is D.
Whoa. The shooting stars you see, especially during a meteor shower, are usually pieces of dust no bigger than the tip of a pencil.
The light you see from a meteor is actually not from the dust or rock itself, but rather the burning hot air generated when the meteoroid enters Earth's atmosphere.
So um, narrator, tell me this.
You said before these meteor showers happen every year.
How's that possible?
Do meteoroids just decide to visit Earth every summer like it's a vacation home or something?
It's more like the other way around.
The Earth is visiting the meteoroids.
Say what? It has to do with comets.
Smarty Pants, you might remember our Comets episode.
Do you remember what comets are made of?
That's right, rock and ice.
Ice, ice, comet! When a comet gets close to the sun, its ice melts, causing it to leave a trail of dust and rocks, which are also meteoroids.
Well, the Earth's orbit crosses paths with the orbits of some comets, which means the Earth goes right through a dust and rock trail just like you might run through a sprinkler.
This creates a meteor shower.
For example, every August, the Earth passes through the orbit of the comet Swift -Tuttle, which creates one of the most famous meteor showers, the Perseids.
Smarty Pants, true or false?
Meteorites from meteor showers help scientists learn more about comets.
Eh, I'm gonna say true.
I'm guessing you'll learn a lot about asteroids from our meteorites too.
Yes, you're right that meteorites from asteroids do provide information for scientists.
But the answer is false, because meteor showers usually don't create meteorites.
The dust and rocks from comets are so fragile, they burn up entirely in the atmosphere before they have a chance to hit the ground.
But some meteors, like planet pieces, do hit the ground and become meteorites, right?
Right. So tell me this, smart guy.
How come we asteroids get such a bad rep and meteorites don't?
We got blamed for that whole dinosaur extinction thingy, which was Earth's fault, and people get all worked up whenever we fly by, and yet meteoroids smack Earth all the time and people are just meh.
That's because even the larger meteoroids are not as big as asteroids when they enter the Earth's atmosphere.
They're usually about the size of a house or smaller.
NASA says most space rocks smaller than a football field will break up in the Earth's atmosphere, so meteoroids tend to break apart, while asteroids typically do not.
The asteroid that killed the dinosaurs was about 7 .5 miles, or 12 kilometers, wide.
Okay, but these meteorites could still hit somebody, right?
Well, that usually doesn't happen.
You hear that, Petey?
He said, usually. Uh -huh, I heard it.
So are you telling me these meteoroid things have hit people?
Ah, yes, it's happened before.
What, you weren't going to tell us about it?
I was getting around to it.
Mm -hmm, let's go. Spill the beans.
I will. Right after this quick break.
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Okay, smarty pants.
As we said earlier, meteors from the Moon, planets, or asteroids tend to break apart in the Earth's atmosphere.
Those that do hit the ground and become meteorites tend to be a lot smaller than they were in space.
Usually they're between the size of a pebble and a baseball.
Since our planet is 71 % covered in water, most meteorites land in where?
Did you say the ocean?
That's right! Most meteorites land in the ocean and are gone forever.
Ahhh. Of course, thousands also end up on land, but even then they're hard to find since they look a lot like shiny Earth rocks.
Ooh. But they could be anywhere.
You might even have a meteorite in your backyard and not even know it.
Whoa. Okay, smart guy.
If most meteorites look just like Earth rocks, how do you know they came from the Moon, Mars, or an asteroid?
One way is by studying what they're made of.
Sometimes meteorites contain gases that satellites and rovers have found on Mars.
Other meteorites have minerals similar to the rocks brought back from our missions to the Moon.
Others are similar to known asteroids.
But if these meteorites are so good at hiding, how do people find them?
Great question. Smarty pants, remember that meteor that came from an asteroid hitting the Moon?
Weeee! How could we forget it?
It's so cute! Right.
Where on Earth do you think it could land and be easily found?
Hmm. There are two major locations where scientists look for meteorites.
Here's a hint for location one.
Whoa. Mama Mia, it's so hot out here.
Pfft! Ants! Sandy. And here's a hint for location two.
I -uh -yeah, it's s -s -s -s -s -s -s -c -c -cold and -and c -c -c -c -covered in snow.
Hey, Bob, meteorites come from frigid space and survive pointing up in the Earth's atmosphere.
I think they can handle a little heat and snow.
You have a point there.
Smarty pants, have you made a guess?
Yep, meteorites tend to be found mostly in deserts and big icy locations like Antarctica.
Ah -uh -uh. Want to know another easy way to find a meteorite?
Have one smack ya. Or crash into your house!
Hahaha! That actually happened in Alabama just a few days after Thanksgiving in 1954.
Pfft! A woman named Ann Hodges was napping on her couch, when an eight and a half pound softball -sized meteorite crashed through her ceiling, hitting her radio, then bouncing onto her.
Ow! Whose softball is this?
The meteorite gave her a big surprise and a bigger bruise, but otherwise Ann was fine.
See? Gotta stay on alert.
One second you're minding your own business, the next, pow!
Smack by a space rock.
Yeah, not quite. Meteorite strikes almost never happen.
The only other story I know of came out of Germany, where a kid got hit in the hand by a pea -sized meteorite.
He was barely injured and that was over ten years ago.
Thousands upon thousands of meteorites have hit the earth since.
So smarty pants, keep enjoying those meteor showers.
You really have nothing to worry about.
Who wants to play? Aww, such a cutie!
Yeah, I chip off the old block.
A triple shout out to Annabelle, Penelope, and Amelia in Dallas, Texas who are probably listening in the car with friends and family.
And if you're not, that's okay too.
You three are more than welcome to smart with us anywhere, anytime.
Thanks! This episode, Meteors, was written by Dave Bodry and voiced by Charlotte Cone, Taya Garland, Katie Lou Chastain, and Jerry Kolber.
Technical direction and sound design by Josh Hahn.
Who smarted is recorded and mixed at the Relic Room Studios.
Our associate producer is Max Kamaski.
The theme song is by Brian Suarez, with lyrics written and performed by Adam Tex Davis.
Who smarted was created and produced by Adam Tex Davis and Jerry Kolber.
This has been an Atomic Entertainment Production.
