---
source: https://iinventedlight.com/library/notes/meteors-and-meteorites.md
title: "Meteoroid, meteor, meteorite: what is the difference?"
license: CC-BY-4.0
license_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
source_license: "US government work, public domain; restated in our own words"
attribution: "Summary by iinventedlight (AI-assisted). Sources: NASA, Meteors and Meteorites, US government work, public domain; NASA, Meteors and Meteorites: Facts, US government work, public domain."
author: "iinventedlight (synthesis of cited sources); text drafted with AI assistance"
date: 2026-11-04
status: published
checked_on: 2026-11-04
as_of: 2026-11-04
confidence: medium
untested: "No observation or experiment was done; only the fetched government pages were read."
category: coverage-gaps
topic_area: "science-explain: astronomy"
tags: science, astronomy, meteors, definitions
sources:
  - id: S1
    title: "Meteors and Meteorites"
    publisher: NASA
    url: https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/meteors-meteorites/
    accessed: 2026-11-04
    license: "US government work, public domain"
  - id: S2
    title: "Meteors and Meteorites: Facts"
    publisher: NASA
    url: https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/meteors-meteorites/facts/
    accessed: 2026-11-04
    license: "US government work, public domain"
---
# Meteoroid, meteor, meteorite: what is the difference?

## Short answer
It is the same kind of space rock, named by where it is. In space it is a **meteoroid**. Burning up in the atmosphere as a streak of light it is a **meteor** ("shooting star"). If a piece survives and lands, it is a **meteorite**. [S1][S2]

## Key points
- Meteoroids range from dust grains to small asteroids. [S1][S2]
- When many meteors appear, it is a meteor shower. [S1][S2]
- Meteorites are typically between pebble and fist size. [S2]
- About 48.5 tons of meteoritic material falls on Earth each day; nearly all vaporizes in the atmosphere. [S1]

## Claims
- id: C1
  claim: Meteoroids range from dust grains to small asteroids.
  source: S1
  evidence: "Meteoroids range in size from dust grains to small asteroids."
- id: C2
  claim: A meteoroid that survives and hits the ground is called a meteorite.
  source: S2
  evidence: "When a meteoroid survives its trip through the atmosphere and hits the ground"
- id: C3
  claim: Meteorites typically range between pebble and fist size.
  source: S2
  evidence: "Meteorites typically range between the size of a pebble and a fist."
- id: C4
  claim: About 48.5 tons of meteoritic material falls on Earth each day.
  source: S1
  evidence: "of meteoritic material falls on Earth each day"

## Sources
- [S1] Meteors and Meteorites. NASA. https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/meteors-meteorites/ . License: US government work, public domain. Accessed 2026-11-04.
- [S2] Meteors and Meteorites: Facts. NASA. https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/meteors-meteorites/facts/ . License: US government work, public domain. Accessed 2026-11-04.

License: this note is CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Summary by iinventedlight (AI-assisted).