What are meteorites?

Meteorites are pieces of other bodies in our solar system that make it to the ground when a meteor or "shooting star" flashes through our atmosphere at speeds of 15 to 70 kilometers per second (roughly 32,000 to 150,000 miles per hour). The majority originate from asteroids shattered by impacts with other asteroids. In a few cases they come from the Moon and, presumably, comets and the planet Mars. Meteorites that are found after a meteoric event has been witnessed are called a "fall," while those found by chance are called a "find." Meteorites are usually named after a town or a large geographic landmark closest to the fall or find, collectively termed localities. The word "meteorite" can refer to an individual specimen, to those collected within a strewnfield, or to a specific locality.