Meteors
How to Watch the Perseid Meteor Shower
Known for its 'fireball' meteors, the Perseid shower began on July 14 and will peak in mid-August
Fireball Illuminates Skies Across East Coast of Florida
The asteroid fragment weighed 900 pounds and hit Earth's atmosphere at 38,000 miles per hour
Ancient Lightning May Have Sparked Life on Earth
More than a billion strikes a year likely provided an essential element for organisms
Rare Meteorite Found in U.K. Driveway Could Hold Secrets of the Early Solar System
Thousands of people spotted the fireball on February 28, and more fragments may still be scattered in Gloucestershire
What Antarctic Meteorites Tell Us About Earth's Origins
Each year, Smithsonian scientists collect hundreds of meteorites from Antarctica that reveal details about the origins of Earth and our solar system
How to See the Orionids Meteor Shower Peak Tonight
The meteor shower reaches peak visibility just before dawn on Wednesday morning but will last until November 7
What an Asteroid Could Tell Us About Ancient Earth
Knowing those rocks’ origins will help scientists learn more about the composition of objects in the solar system and asteroid belt
Perseid Meteor Shower Reaches Peak Starting Tonight
The early mornings of August 11, 12 and 13 are the best times to view the annual summer 'shooting star' display
What Is Hotter Than the Sun?
Get the facts from Smithsonian geologist Liz Cottrell in the latest episode of "The Doctor Is In."
Archivists Find the Oldest Record of Human Death by Meteorite
The 1888 historical account is likely the first ever confirmed case of a human being struck dead by an interstellar interloper
How To Watch April’s Lyrid Meteor Shower From Home
Though not as plentiful as the Perseids in summer, the Lyrids can serve up some serious fireballs
A New Type of Aurora Ripples Across the Sky in Horizontal Green ‘Dunes’
Originally observed by citizen scientists, the unusual light show might help researchers better understand a poorly studied layer of the atmosphere
Meteorite Grains Are the Oldest Known Solid Material on Earth
The oldest dust sample, perhaps 7 billion years old, predates the formation of our planet and the sun
How to Catch the Quadrantids, the First Major Meteor Shower of the 2020s
This cosmic light show will peak in the predawn hours of January 4
In 1954, an Extraterrestrial Bruiser Shocked This Alabama Woman
Ann Hodges remains the only human known to have been injured by direct impact of a meteorite
An Interstellar Meteor May Have Collided With Earth in 2014
Researchers have identified an object that, they theorize, was traveling too fast to have originated within our solar system
Scientists Find a Tiny Speck of Comet Inside a Meteorite
The little fragment found in Antarctica was protected from the elements and preserves the chemical signature of the early solar system
Using Landmine Detectors, Meteorite Hunt Turns Up 36 Space Rocks in Antarctica
The scientists had a hunch that more meteorites were hidden a foot below the ice—they were right
A Meteor Struck the Moon During Sunday’s Total Eclipse
It may be the first time that such an event was documented from Earth
The Oldest Material in the Smithsonian Institution Came From Outer Space
Decades after the Allende Meteorite plunged to Earth, scientists still mine its fragments for clues to the cosmos
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