the.com/protoplanet
a planet's rebellious teenage years, all mass and no manners.
means a large body formed from clumped dust and rock in a young solar system, big enough to be round-ish but not yet a full planet.
from from greek protos, meaning first, plus planet — coined as astronomers realized planets don't just appear, they accrete, bully, and eat their neighbors first.
our moon's makera mars-sized protoplanet named theia hit earth.
vestaa surviving protoplanet still orbiting in the asteroid belt.
growth methodgravity plus collisions, not gentle assembly.
timelinecan form in just a few million years.