Here's how it works:

1. Space Debris: Meteors are essentially small pieces of rock or dust, often leftover from comets or asteroids, that are traveling through space at incredibly high speeds.

2. Atmospheric Entry: When these particles enter Earth's atmosphere, they collide with air molecules.

3. Friction and Heat: These collisions create immense friction, causing the meteor to heat up rapidly.

4. Incandescence: As the meteor gets hotter, it starts to glow brightly, becoming incandescent. This is the light we see as a meteor.

5. Vaporization: If the meteor is small enough, the intense heat will eventually vaporize it completely, leaving no trace. Larger meteors might survive partially and fall to Earth as meteorites.

So, it's not the meteor itself that is emitting light, but the friction-induced heat that makes it glow.

Let me know if you'd like to know more about meteors, meteor showers, or meteorites!