Asteroids, Comets & Meteors
Our solar system's small bodies pack outsized intrigue
Asteroids
Rocky leftovers from planet formation.
Comets
Cosmic snowballs of gas and dust.
Meteors
Bits of debris that fall through the atmosphere.
Planetary Defense
Protect Earth from impacts.
Overview
Asteroids, comets, and meteors are chunks of rock, ice, and metal left over from the formation of our solar system about 4.6 billion years ago.
Eyes on Asteroids
Explore the 3D world of asteroids, comets, and NEOs. Learn about past and future missions, tracking and predicting orbits, and close approaches to Earth.
NASA/JPL-Caltech
Asteroid News
Asteroid and Comet Resources
Explore this page for a curated collection of resources, including activities that can be done at home, as well as videos and animations, images, handouts, and online interactives. This resource package is suitable for educators, students, and anyone interested in learning more about asteroids and comets!
Learn More
A pair of stereoscopic images of the asteroid Dinkinesh and its satellite, Selam, created using data collected by the L’LORRI camera on NASA's Lucy spacecraft in the minutes around closest approach on Nov. 1, 2023.
NASA/Goddard/SwRI/Johns Hopkins APL/NOIRLab for the original images/Brian May/Claudia Manzoni for stereo processing of the images.
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