Editing Meteoroid (section)

=== Collision with Earth's atmosphere ===
{{main|Meteor}}
[[File:Meteoroid meteor meteorite.gif|Animated illustration of different phases as a meteoroid enters the Earth's atmosphere to become visible as a [[meteor]] and land as a [[meteorite]]|thumb|right]]

When meteoroids intersect with Earth's atmosphere at night, they are likely to become visible as [[#Meteors|meteors]]. If meteoroids survive the entry through the atmosphere and reach Earth's surface, they are called [[#Meteorites|meteorites]]. Meteorites are transformed in structure and chemistry by the heat of entry and force of impact. A noted {{convert|4|m|adj=on|}} [[asteroid]], {{mpl|2008 TC|3}}, was observed in space on a collision course with Earth on 6&nbsp;October 2008 and entered Earth's atmosphere the next day, striking a remote area of northern Sudan. It was the first time that a meteoroid had been observed in space and tracked prior to impacting Earth.<ref name="IMO-meteoroid"/> [[NASA]] has produced a map showing the most notable asteroid collisions with Earth and its atmosphere from 1994 to 2013 from data gathered by U.S. government sensors.<ref>{{cite web |title=New Map Shows Frequency of Small Asteroid Impacts, Provides Clues on Larger Asteroid Population |url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/new-map-shows-frequency-of-small-asteroid-impacts-provides-clues-on-larger-asteroid-population/ |website=NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) |access-date=17 February 2025}}</ref>