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The Question
(Submitted November 03, 1997)
I would like to know if shooting stars are real, and what makes them
move? Thank you for your answer.
The Answer
Shooting stars come from meteoroids, small pieces of material left over from
the formation of the solar system, which are entering the earth's atmosphere
and burning up as they do. You can find out more on
our web pages:
http://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/solar_system_level1/meteoroids.html
and
http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/ask_astro/answers/970409b.html
I hope this helps!
Tim Kallman
for the Ask a High-Energy Astronomer Team
Questions on this topic are no longer responded to by the "Ask a
High-Energy Astronomer" service. See http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/ask_astro/ask_an_astronomer.html
for help on other astronomy Q&A services.
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