Meteorites are chunks of material (such as giant rocks) from the solar system that manage to make it to the ground as a larger meteor passes through the atmosphere. Meteors entering from outer space pass through the atmosphere at extremely high rates of speed (from 15 to 70 kilometers per second) and tend to mostly burn up in the process. As they pass through the atmosphere, they may be visible from the ground as a streak of light, and this is what is commonly known as a “shooting star.”