A protostar is a very young star that is still gathering mass from its parent molecular cloud. It is the earliest phase in the process of stellar evolution. [1]

Oct 30, 2025 · What is a Protostar? A protostar is a stage in the formation of a star where a dense cloud of gas and dust begins to collapse under its own gravity. This collapse triggers the process of nuclear …

May 21, 2024 · What is a Protostar? A protostar is a young star which is in the early stages of formation, before it reaches the main sequence stage. This stage of star formation can last 100,000 years or …

May 2, 2025 · At first, most of the protostar’s energy comes from heat released by its initial collapse. After millions of years, immense pressures and temperatures in the star’s core squeeze the nuclei of …

Nov 16, 2025 · A Protostar is the first stage of a star’s life after an event of some form has caused a nebula of dust and cloud to collapse. It has not yet built enough mass to fuse hydrogen to helium.

A protostar looks like a star but its core is not yet hot enough for fusion to take place. The luminosity comes exclusively from the heating of the protostar as it contracts.

Description: A protostar is an early stage in the star formation process. It is a large mass of gas and dust formed as a result of the contraction of a giant molecular cloud in the interstellar medium.

Aug 30, 2004 · The image below shows a very young protostar, still deeply embedded in its dust cloud. The star itself is the bright red spot near the base of the dark region. The bright spots above the star …

Feb 22, 2025 · What is a protostar? A protostar is the earliest stage in the formation of a star. Imagine a giant cloud of gas and dust in space. Over time, gravity pulls this material together, causing it to …

4 days ago · Welcome to the 18th annual Space Telescope Advent Calendar, featuring remarkable images from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and James Webb Space Telescope. Every day until …