protostar
noun
pro·to·star
ˈprō-tō-ˌstär 
: a cloud of gas and dust in space believed to develop into a star
Examples of protostar in a Sentence
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For a protostar to begin fusion — the process that enables stars to create their own energy — atoms and molecules within it must collide with each other and release heat.
—
Perri Thaler, Space.com, 16 Aug. 2025
Now, with the much bigger JWST, the full picture snaps into focus: the telescope captured this field of dust and debris just as a baby protostar (probably located somewhere on its lower right, outside the boundary of the image shown here) was blasting it into this very particular shape.
—Gayoung Lee, Scientific American, 12 Aug. 2025
The view is rare because jets of gas emitted by protostars, known as outflow, often block the view of the disk, the researchers said.
—Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 17 July 2025
This is thought to be deleterious to the continued existence of complex chemicals built during earlier stages of the protostar's existence.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 31 July 2025
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Perri Thaler, Space.com, 16 Aug. 2025
Now, with the much bigger JWST, the full picture snaps into focus: the telescope captured this field of dust and debris just as a baby protostar (probably located somewhere on its lower right, outside the boundary of the image shown here) was blasting it into this very particular shape.
—Gayoung Lee, Scientific American, 12 Aug. 2025
The view is rare because jets of gas emitted by protostars, known as outflow, often block the view of the disk, the researchers said.
—Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 17 July 2025
This is thought to be deleterious to the continued existence of complex chemicals built during earlier stages of the protostar's existence.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 31 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for protostar
Cite this Entry
“Protostar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/protostar. Accessed 28 Aug. 2025.
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