An object that crashes into Earth is called a meteorite. A meteorite is a solid object that has fallen to Earth from space. It should be differentiated from a meteoroid, which is a small particle that orbits the sun and originates as debris from a comet, asteroid, or other objects in the solar system. When a meteoroid enters the Earth's atmosphere, it is heated by friction and begins to glow, becoming a meteor. If the meteor does not completely vaporize in the atmosphere and strikes the Earth, it is then called a meteorite.