is closer to us, we use light-seconds instead of light-years to measure its distance. The distance from the Earth to the Moon is 1.3 light-seconds!
z Fig. 21.2.4 Asteroids
Asteroids are lumps of rock that orbit the Sun. They are too small to be classified as planets. They range in size from less that 1 km to 1,000 km in diameter.
Asteroids are thought to have been left over from the formation of the universe. The asteroid belt lies between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. It contains a large amount of irregular-shaped asteroids that vary in size and what they are made of.
Investigating asteroids
Investigate one of the following well- known asteroids: Apophis, Ceres, Chiron, Eros or Vesta.
Write a report describing the asteroid using the following headings: diameter, composition and date of discovery.
Also include any interesting facts you found out about this asteroid.
z
Fig. 21.2.5 The asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter
There are three types of asteroids: zz
zz zz
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C-type asteroids are made up of carbon compounds. S-type asteroids are made up of stony material.
M-type asteroids are mostly made of metals, such as iron.
