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Friction. As solid bodies pass into the atmosphere, the friction of the atmosphere passing over the surface heats them up. A common byproduct of heat is light. Those bodies that fall into the atmosphere that do not have a controlled descent, burn up. Those that are large enough to survive, or that do have a controlled descent, will contact the surface.

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Q: Why is a streak of light seen as a meteoroid enters the Earth's atmosphere?
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What term describes a streak of light when a meteoroid enters earths atmosphere?

"Meteor" does.


When a meteoroid enters Earth's atmosphere it produces a streak of light called a?

The streak of light created by a meteoroid entering the Earth's atmosphere is called a meteor. A meteorite is the remains of a meteoroid that did not vaporize after entering the Earth's atmosphere.


What produces streak of light as it enters the earths atmosphere?

meteor


What prooduces a streak of light as it enters earths atmosphere?

A meteor or comet


When a meteoroid enters Earth's atmosphere it produces a streak of light called a(n)?

Meteor. And if it lands it is called a Meteorite.


When a meteoroid enter earths atmosphere it produces a streak of light called a n?

Meteor. And if it lands it is called a Meteorite.


What is the streak of light called that is seen after an asteroid enter's earth's atmosphere?

The bright streak of light is the meteoroid burning up in the atmosphere due to friction from its extreme velocity. If the meteoroid completely burns up, it is called a meteor; if part of it makes it to the ground, it is called a meteorite.


Meteors that reach the earths surface are called?

A meteor IS a what you call a body of matter when it enters earth's atmosphere. A meteoroid is what you call a body of matter in space that hasn't entered earth's atmosphere. Source: Dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/meteor


What is the term for a metiorite which enters earths atmosphere?

The streak of light across the sky caused when a space rock falls through the atmosphere and is heated to incandescence is a "meteor".


When a meteoroid enters the Earth's atmosphere it produces a streak of light called what?

A meteor or a shooting star. If the object isn't completeley vaporized and survives to reach the ground, it becomes a meterorite.


What is a rock from space that strikes earths surface?

A meteoroid is a rock in space. If it strikes the earth's atmosphere, it will create a meteor, which is a streak of light in the sky. If the meteoroid was large enough, it may reach the ground. Once it has hit the ground it is called a meteorite.


A bright streak of light in the sky caused by the entry into earth's atmosphere of a meteoroid?

When a meteoroid enters the earths atmosphere it is usually travelling very fast, fast enough to encounter great friction against the small amounts of gas at that height, so much so that is burns up under the heat generated. At that point it becomes very bright and visible to observers on earth, it is reffered to as a meteor or shooting star during the very breif burn phase.