A meteor shower is what happens when a lot of meteors enter the atmosphere during a relatively short period of time. Many people enjoy meteor showers because they allow you to see many meteors at once. Sometimes, this happens because Earth has passed through what’s known as a —a large number of meteoroids moving in a parallel path. Some meteor showers occur when Earth passes through the path where a comet has traveled—the meteors in these showers are comet fragments that have fallen off and been pulled in by Earth’s gravity. Due to the regularity of the Earth’s , some meteor showers happen at the same time every year (when Earth passes the paths of these comets). Some particularly well-known meteor showers include the (in mid-August), the (in mid-November), and the (in early May), which are linked to the famous ., And if a meteor survives the burn and lands on the ground, it’s called a meteorite. So, what’s the difference between asteroids, comets, and meteors? Well, asteroids are rocky, comets are icy, and meteors are much smaller and are the shooting stars that you see up in the sky., Learn the difference between meteoroids, meteors, meteorites, comets, and asteroids. See how a fireball differs from a normal meteor..