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 ., Most asteroids are found in a ring between the orbit of Mars and Jupiter called the asteroid belt. Some asteroids are round, some are elongated, and some even have a satellite. A comet also orbits the Sun, but unlike an asteroid, it’s composed of ice and dust. So, when a comet gets close to the Sun, its ice and dust content start to vaporize., Meteoroids, meteors, meteorites, comets, and asteroids are all related to “shooting stars.” But, what to call an object depends on its location and composition. Here is a look at the differences between these objects..