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Videos

Several videos are available through NASA's Central Operation of Resources for Educators (CORE). A search using the word "comet" produces several products, including the following:

Comet Halley Returns, 1996
This 30-minute program for young adults and adults features a narrated history of Halley's comet and a discussion about its value to astronomers in studying the origin of the solar system.

Stardust Mission: Bringing Cosmic History to Earth, 1998
This 8-minute video for young adults and adults explores the technology behind the exciting comet rendezvous and sampling mission.

Small Bodies Big Impact, 1999
This 60-minute video for children ages 10-17 features two live broadcasts. In "Cool Comets" viewers go behind the scenes to learn about NASA missions that will capture comet dust samples and bring them back to Earth to provide scientists with information about comets that will help us understand the origins of our solar system.

The Magic School Bus: Out of This World, Scholastic Publications, Inc., 1997, Libraryvideo.com #K9546
This 30-minute video for children ages 4-9 is based on the best-selling "Magic School Bus" book series. In an animated adventure, Ms. Frizzle and her class learn about comets, meteors, and asteroids.

Meteors, Asteroids, and Comets: Vol. 4, Phoenix Multimedia, 2000, Libraryvideo.com #N0344
In this fourth volume from the "Lights in the Sky" series, viewers ages 12 through adult are launched on a journey to examine the meteorites, asteroids, and comets that traverse our skies. It features full-color animation, graphics, and photos with fact-filled animation.

Comets and Meteors, Bill Nye, Walt Disney Productions, 1997, Product #110484 (to order, phone: 616-365-2232; fax: 616-365-2222; e-mail: [email protected])
Comets and meteors are more than just "space chunks" when explored with Bill Nye! They are the carriers of important information about the history of our universe, and may have even been instrumental in the creation of our own Earth as we know it. Children ages 10 and up will find this video entertaining and informative.

Books

Asteroids, Comets, and Meteors
Gregory Vogt, Millbrook Press, 1996, ISBN 1562946013
Vogt offers children ages 4-8 a thorough introduction to the origins and composition of asteroids, comets, and meteors and their "impact" on our planet's history. The impact of Shoemaker-Levy on Jupiter's surface is explored.

Out of This World: A Book About Space Rocks (The Magic School Bus)
Joanna Cole, Scholastic, Inc., 1996, ISBN 0590921568
A fictional account of a teacher and her students traveling through space in search of "space rocks". During the trip they encounter comets, meteors, asteroids, and much more! Fun and instructional for children ages 5-10.

Comets and Meteors: Visitors from Space
Jeanne Bendick, Millbrook Press, 1994, ISBN 1878841556
Written for children ages 4-8.

Comets and Shooting Stars
Patrick Moore, Copper Beech Books, 1995, ISBN 1562946250
Written for children ages 4-8.

Comets (Let's Read and Find Out Science Books)
F. Branley and T. Y. Crowell, 1984, ISBN 0690044143
Branley explores what comets are, how they formed, and why comets - such as Halley - visit Earth at predictable intervals. For children ages 4-8.

Discovering Comets and Meteors (Isaac Asimov's New Library of the Universe)
Frank Reddy, Greg Walz-Chojnacki, and Isaac Asimov, Gareth Stevens, 1996, ISBN 0836812301
Written for children ages 4-8, this book presents the characteristics of comets and meteors and explores famous comets and unexplained mysteries connected with them.

The Comet and You
E. Krupp, Macmillan, 1985, ISBN 0027512509
Written for children ages 4-8, this book investigates the history, appearance, orbit, and physical composition of Halley's comet and compares it to other comets.

Can You Hitch a Ride on a Comet? (A Question of Science Book)
Sidney Rosen and Deborah Dennard, Carolrhoda Books, ISBN 0876147732
In a question-and-answer format, this book for children ages 4-8 explores what comets are, where they come from, and where they go.

Halley Came to Jackson
Mary-Chapin Carpenter, Harper-Collins Juvenile Books, 1998, ISBN 0060254009
Carpenter weaves a delightful story, richly illustrated, in which a baby girl and her father watch the passing of Comet Halley. Years later, from the same porch, the grown woman watches the comet pass again. For children ages 4-8.

Comets, Meteors, and Asteroids
Seymour Simon, Harper Trophy, 1998, ISBN 0688158439
Targeted to ages 8-10, Simon's book presents basic information about meteors, including the difference between meteoroids, meteors, and meteorites. Written in plain language with large print, the book uses numerous supportive illustrations.

Luck Follows Me
Laurie Lawlor, Minstrel Books, 1996, ISBN 0671537180
In this book, recommended for children ages 9-12, the year is 1910, and a young girl visits her grandfather, who was born when Comet Halley was seen. Follow her adventures as she deals with a mysterious secret, an attic ghost, and her grandfather's superstition that he is going to die when the comet passes over again.

Asteroids, Comets, and Meteors
Robin Kerrod, Lerner Publications Company, 2003, ISBN 0822539055
Kerrod includes recent NASA color images and fun facts in his well-written book for ages 9-12.

Comets and Meteor Showers
Paul Sipiera, Children's Press, 1997, ISBN 0516261665
For children ages 9-12, this book offers an introduction to comets, why scientists study them, and how they are related to meteor showers.

Comets (First Book)
Samantha Bonar, Franklin Watts, 1998, ISBN 0531203018
This engaging, well-illustrated text for children ages 9-12 explores what scientists know about comets and some of the myths associated with well-known comets.

Comets, Asteroids, and Meteorites (Kaleidoscope: Space Series)
Roy A. Gallant, Benchmark Books, 2000, ISBN 0761410341
Gallant's book targets 9-12-year-old audiences and offers an abundance of illustrations and photography, as well as a glossary of important terms.

Seeing the Sky: 100 Projects, Activities & Explorations in Astronomy
Fred Schaff, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1990, ISBN 0471520934
Schaff devotes an entire section of his book to activities and projects with meteors and comets. His book offers beginning and amateur astronomers, ages 15 and up, a hands-on introduction to naked-eye astronomy and activities using household materials.

Cosmic Phenomena: Comets, Meteor Showers, Eclipses
Gabriele Vanin, Firefly Books, 1999, ISBN 1552094235
Vanin, president of the Italian Astrophiles' Union, captures the wonder and fear associated with comets and meteors in this well-documented and well-illustrated text for young adults and adults.

Comet
Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan, Random House, 1985, ISBN 0345412222
Written for young adult and adult "arm-chair scientists," this book explore the origin, nature, and future of comets, and the exotic myths and portents attached to them, in an easy-to-read and well illustrated format.

Meteors, Meteorites, and Meteoroids (Out of This World)
Ray Spangenburg, Kit Moser, and Diane Moser, Franklin Watts, Inc., 2002, ISBN 0531155676
In this book for young adults, the authors explore the mysteries of these rocks, including the addition of sidebars on scientific theories, tables and charts, a glossary, and substantial resource section.

Comets, Meteors, and Asteroids
John Man, DK Publishing, 2001, ISBN 0789481596
Man's book introduces high-school and college students (and younger readers as well) to the role played by dust to moon-sized rocks in the evolution of our solar system. Illustrations are accompanied by fact-filled captions that allow even casual readers to gain familiarity with the subject.

Web Sites

Enchanted Learning's comet page provides a well-illustrated introduction to comets for children ages 8-15. The site features related facts, games, puzzles, and other activities, as well as links to other sites.

Enchanted Learning's meteoroid page gives a clear and concise overview of meteoroids, meteorites, and meteors for children ages 8-15. Interesting facts are provided on sidebars, along with quizzes and links to other sites for further exploration.

By typing "meteors" in the search bar on the NASAKids site visitors will access over 30 articles on meteors and meteor-related topics. Viewers ages 8 and up will find this site both instructive and enjoyable, with several articles offering an audio component, links, and fun facts.

The Alder Planetarium presents Something Fell from the Sky!, a read-only interactive site for children ages 5-8. Utilizing simple characters, the site reveals information about comets and meteors.

Captain Comet, from the NASA Stardust mission, is an interactive Web site for children. Younger children can unscramble images, piece together puzzles, and learn more about planetary science. While the information covered is broad, there are plenty of comet references and resources.

NASA's Deep Impact Mission Education Web pages offer activities, puzzles, word-search games, crossword puzzles, and brain teasers for children of all ages.

NASA's StarChild explores comets, asteroids, and meteoroids through a worksheet designed to assess children's understanding and learning about these planetary bodies. The worksheet accompanies well-illustrated and animated information sheets for younger children and older children.

The Comet's Tale is an interactive series of learning modules for children ages 9-13. Lessons are estimated to cover 8-10 class periods. Children explore the origin, characteristics, and history of comets. The site includes animations, activities, and interactive games.

Windows to the Universe provides basic information about comets on multiple levels in English or Spanish. Illustrations, images, and an interactive animation of a comet's orbit and interaction with the solar wind. Comet news and comet mission updates are provided.

Explore comets, meteoroids and meteorites, the Oort cloud, and the Kuiper belt in Calvin Hamilton's Views of the Solar System. Images, facts, and general information are provided for young adults and adults.

The Nine Planets contains facts and historical information about comets, meteors, and the Kuiper belt and Oort cloud. Each subject is accompanied by images, illustrations, and an "open issues" section that shares yet-to-be-answered questions. For young adults and adults.

Meteors and the Native Americans, from Gary W. Kronk's Comets & Meteor Showers , shares several of the intriguing beliefs of Native American cultures regarding these moving bodies in the sky. For children ages 12 and up.

NASA's Planetary Photojournal offers asteroid and comet images with detailed captions.

Sky and Telescope 's Meteor Page keeps visitors up to date with the latest predictions for meteor viewing and provides substantial background information and viewing tips. Information on upcoming meteor showers is also provided.

NASA's Perseid Meteor Shower site offers information, a starchart, and streaming audio of the Perseid Meteor Shower as well as links to other sites covering this annual phenomenon. Suitable for ages 10 and up.

The Leonid Shower site from NASA's Ames Research Center extends a wealth of information on the Leonid meteors for adult viewers including animations, illustrations, photographs, and background facts on meteors and meteor showers in general.

The American Meteor Society is a scientific organization of amateur and professional astronomers who observe and monitor meteors, meteor showers, and fireballs. The site offers some introductory information, images, and tracking tools.

The Comet Observation Home Page of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory includes recent news and observations, finder charts and orbital diagrams, image archives, and a general information section.

The Near-Live Comet Watching System is designed to allow visitors to view recently uploaded images of comets. You can even register to upload your own images, pending approval.

Hubble Video Clips contain an animation of Comet Hale-Bopp's nucleus. This animation is not for online viewing as the files are very large and intended for playback on dedicated video players (not desktop computers). Watch the comet jet off ice and dust as it rotates into the heat of sunlight.

Tailing a Comet, from NASA's Deep Space 1 mission, offers information about present and future comet missions, as well the latest news and discoveries and a general interest section on comets.

Stardust, NASA's comet sample return mission, sampled Comet Wild 2 in January 2004 and is due to return material to Earth in January 2006. The site includes images, facts, and an education section with a future vision for space exploration.

NASA's Deep Impact Mission will encounter Comet Temple 1 in July 2005. The spacecraft will release a projectile that will impact the planet and excavate a hole in the surface of the nucleus. The spacecraft will monitor the emissions from the fresh surface and relay its readings back to Earth. Follow the mission and learn with the scientists!

Comet Hyakutake, from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, offers more than 1000 images of this comet.

Comet Hale-Bopp, from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, offers the largest collection of images of this famous comet along with additional information.

Comet P/Shoemaker-Levy 9, from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, offers images and information about the comet that fragmented and, in the summer of 1994, collided with Jupiter in the first collision of two solar system bodies ever to be observed.


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Last updated
February 22, 2005