Meteorite Hunting
Recommended for: Ages 10 and up
Badges: Maryland Skies
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Meteoroids are “space rocks.” When a meteoroid enters a planet’s atmosphere at high speed and burns up, they are called shooting stars. If a meteoroid survives its trip through the atmosphere and lands on the ground, we call it a meteorite. In this activity, you will learn about meteoroids and become a meteorite hunter!
You Will Need
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Magnet
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Magnifying glass
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Dirt
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Post-it Notes
Wonder
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What are meteoroids?
Where do they come from?
What is a shooting star?
When can we see shooting stars?
Watch
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Learn about meteor showers from National Geographic:
What’s the difference between a comet, asteroid, and meteor?
Read
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Check out this article from NASA about Meteors and when to see them.
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Try
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Become a Meteorite Hunter! Check out this great activity by the Children’s Museum Indianapolis to learn how to from micrometeorites from the dust around your house.
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Wonderlog
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Want to complete this task towards collecting a Wondernauts badge? Share with the Wondernauts community about your experience! Did you find any dust and rock from a meteorite? Write about what it feels like to find something that was once traveling in space!
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