What is a meteoroid that has entered Earth’s atmosphere and produces a bright streak of light called?

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Study for the Ontario Grade 9 Destreamed Science Exam. Enhance your learning with multiple choice questions, hints, and detailed explanations. Be confident and ready for your science test!

A meteoroid that has entered Earth’s atmosphere and produces a bright streak of light is known as a meteor. When a meteoroid, which is a small rocky or metallic body traveling through space, encounters the Earth's atmosphere, it experiences intense friction due to the air resistance. This friction heats the meteoroid to the point where it glows, creating the visible streak of light often referred to as a "shooting star."

The term meteor is specifically used to describe this phenomenon of the burning meteoroid in the atmosphere. If the meteoroid survives its passage through the atmosphere and lands on the Earth's surface, it is then called a meteorite. An asteroid refers to a much larger celestial body that orbits the Sun, while a comet is an icy object that releases gas and dust, often forming a bright coma and tail when it approaches the Sun. Therefore, the correct terminology for a meteoroid producing a bright streak of light in the atmosphere is meteor.

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