Stellar process
Star Formation
Stars are born when the densest cores of a giant molecular cloud become unable to support themselves against their own gravity and collapse. As a core falls inward it heats, spins up into a disc, and grows a central protostar — a process that can be triggered by the shock of a nearby supernova or the squeeze of a spiral arm.
Highlights
- ›Gravitational collapse of dense molecular-cloud cores
Stars, stages & concepts
Across stellar astrophysics
Knowledge connections
- Associated withMolecular Clouds
- Associated withPre-Main-Sequence Evolution
- Associated withThe Initial Mass Function
- Associated withPre-Main-Sequence Evolution
- Associated withThe Initial Mass Function
Sources
The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.
- NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration
Mission data, planetary science, space telescopes, and public-domain imagery.
Most NASA-produced imagery is in the public domain; individual items are checked for usage terms before publication.