Question

use the text to compare and contrast comets and asteroids.
asteroids and comets orbit the sun just as earth does, but what are they?
both asteroids and comets are relics left over from the beginning of our
solar system. an asteroid is an object made up of rocks and minerals,
while comets consist mostly of ice, along with rock and some
hydrocarbons. another significant difference between the two objects is
size. comets range from about six to twenty - five miles in diameter, yet
asteroids can range from the size of small rocks to more than six
hundred miles in diameter! neither asteroids nor comets have enough
mass to be round the way planets are, so they come in all sorts of
shapes. both asteroids and comets have crashed into earth, but asteroids
have left craters on earth—and they may have caused the mass
extinction of dinosaurs.

Explanation:

• "Orbit the sun": The text says "Asteroids and comets orbit the sun just as Earth does", so both should be checked.
• "Were left over from the formation of the solar system": The text states "Both asteroids and comets are relics left over from the beginning of our solar system", so both should be checked.
• "Are composed mostly of ice": The text mentions "asteroid is an object made up of rocks and minerals, while comets consist mostly of ice", so only comets should be checked.
• "Can be more than six hundred miles in diameter": The text says "asteroids can range from the size of small rocks to more than six hundred miles in diameter", so only asteroids should be checked.
• "Have left craters on Earth": The text states "asteroids have left craters on Earth", so only asteroids should be checked.

Answer:

• Orbit the sun: Comets (✔), Asteroids (✔)
• Were left over from the formation of the solar system: Comets (✔), Asteroids (✔)
• Are composed mostly of ice: Comets (✔), Asteroids (✖)
• Can be more than six hundred miles in diameter: Comets (✖), Asteroids (✔)
• Have left craters on Earth: Comets (✖), Asteroids (✔)