Actually, it is the air in front of the meteoroid that heats up. The particle is traveling at speeds between 20 and 30 kilometers per second. It compresses the air in front, causing the air to get hot. The air is so hot it begins to glow — creating a meteor - the streak of light observed from Earth.
The specific heat capacity is the heat or energy required to change one unit mass of a substance of a constant volume by 1 °C. The formula is Cv = Q / (ΔT ⨉ m)
