Asteroids, Comets & Meteors - NASA Solar System Exploration
Our solar system’s small bodies – asteroids, comets, and meteors – pack big surprises. These chunks of rock, ice, and metal are leftovers from the formation of our solar system 4.6 billion …
In Depth | Our Solar System – NASA Solar System Exploration
Our solar system consists of our star, the Sun, and everything bound to it by gravity – the planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune; dwarf planets such as …
In Depth | 1P/Halley – NASA Solar System Exploration
Until the time of English astronomer Edmond Halley (1656-1742), comets were believed to make only one pass through the solar system. But in 1705, Halley used Isaac Newton's theories of …
In Depth | Oumuamua – NASA Solar System Exploration
The first known interstellar object to visit our solar system, 1I/2017 U1 ‘Oumuamua, was discovered Oct. 19, 2017 by the University of Hawaii’s Pan-STARRS1 telescope, funded by …
In Depth | Perseids – NASA Solar System Exploration
When comets come around the Sun, they leave a dusty trail behind them. Every year Earth passes through these debris trails, which allows the bits to collide with our atmosphere and …
In Depth | Kuiper Belt – NASA Solar System Exploration
Researchers have found that some near-Earth asteroids are actually burned-out comets, and most of them would have started out in the Kuiper Belt. Many comets crash into the Sun or the …
In Depth | 2P/Encke – NASA Solar System Exploration
However, this comet is not named after its discoverer (s). Instead it is named after Johann Franz Encke who calculated the comet's orbit. The letter P indicates that 2P/Encke is a periodic …
In Depth | C/2012 S1 (ISON) – NASA Solar System Exploration
Comets that are regular visitors such as comet Halley are designated with P for periodic comets, meaning its orbital period is less than 200 years. 2012 marks the year of discovery.
RPS 3D Viewer - NASA Solar System Exploration
Oct 21, 2025 · Asteroids, Comets & Meteors About Asteroids, Comets & Meteors BY TYPE Meteors & Meteorites Asteroids Comets
C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) - NASA Solar System Exploration
Comets are usually named for their discoverer (s) or for the name of the observatory/telescope used in the discovery. Since both Alan Hale and Thomas Bopp discovered this comet it is …