Solar System Formation

The Solar System formed about 4.6 billion years ago from a giant cloud of gas and dust in space. This cloud began to collapse under gravity, causing the material to spin and heat up. Most of the mass concentrated at the center, forming the Sun. The remaining debris spread out into a rotating disk, where particles collided and stuck together, gradually building up into planets, moons, and other objects. This process, called accretion, created the structured Solar System we observe today, with planets orbiting the Sun in stable paths.