What actively feeds the interplanetary dust cloud besides asteroid collisions?
Answer
Release of particulate matter when comets approach the Sun and their ice sublimes
Interplanetary dust originates from multiple local sources within the solar system. While collisions among asteroids create numerous fragments that feed the dust cloud, comets are also a major factory. Comets, described as dirty snowballs consisting of ice, rock, and dust, release significant amounts of particulate matter as they near the Sun. The process involves the sublimation of their icy components into gas, which carries the embedded dust along, creating streams that Earth can traverse, resulting in phenomena like meteor showers. This material shed by comets contributes heavily to the overall population of space dust filling the void between planets.
Related Questions
What actively feeds the interplanetary dust cloud besides asteroid collisions?What makes up approximately 90% of the flux in Galactic Cosmic Rays (GCRs)?What crucial magnetic structure is carried outward by the persistent solar wind plasma?What process causes interplanetary dust grains to slowly spiral inward toward the Sun?During which violent solar events are highly accelerated Solar Energetic Particles (SEPs) most notably ejected?Where do Galactic Cosmic Rays (GCRs) originate outside of our heliosphere?How are dust particles primarily measured *in situ* during space missions?What is the relationship between solar activity variations and the measured Galactic Cosmic Ray (GCR) flux near Earth?What is the general size range spanning interplanetary dust particles referred to as micrometeoroids?What are the primary constituents of the plasma making up the continuous solar wind streaming from the Sun’s corona?