Comets, Meteors and Asteroids
- ISBN-10
- 0563537884
- ISBN-13
- 9780563537885
- Category
- Asteriods
- Pages
- 96
- Language
- English
- Published
- 2001
- Author
- John Man
Description
Comets, Meteors and Asteroids explores the origins and life story of these cosmic phenomena which add elements of drama to all planets; in particular, to Earth and its life forms. Comets have always been objects of mystery and terror. This fear, once dismissed as superstition, is sometimes justified: comets really can bring catastrophes in their wake. Research shows that comets are close relatives of both the space dust which forms meteors or shooting stars, and of the larger, inert rocks - the asteroids - which circle the Sun in their millions. All of these objects, left over from the formation of the Solar System, have threatened life with massive impacts and 'nuclear winters'. However, they have also been part of the process by which the Solar System renews itself - we owe our very existence to the impact that destroyed the dinosaurs 65 million years ago. Discovering the truth about this space debris - whose numbers increase by the thousand every year - has revolutionized our view of the Solar System. We now know that even the most distant planet is part of our Sun's system. This stretches out into icy interstellar wastes, from where these tiny objects occasionally fall sunwards to delight us with displays of cosmic brilliance, and threaten us with destruction. The threat of collision with Earth has placed comets and asteroids at the top of the agenda for astronomers, the public, and increasingly for governments. Comets, Meteors and Asteroids gives a fascinating and insightful exploration of these space wanderers and the cosmos. For a more comprehensive look at the solar system John Gribbin's SPACE - OUR FINAL FRONTIER is also available as part of this series.
