What are the different stages of a star?

A star is like a giant, glowing fireball that goes through different life stages, just like you grow from a baby to an adult.

Stars start as babies, called baby stars or protostars. They're made of gas and dust, floating in space, kind of like how you’re made of cells and stuff growing inside your mom’s tummy. These baby stars are small and not very bright yet, but they're getting bigger and hotter every day.

As the baby star gets older, it becomes a main-sequence star, which is like being an adult, strong and steady. The Sun is one of these kinds of stars right now. It shines because it’s burning fuel inside its core, just like you burn energy when you run around playing.

Eventually, the star runs out of fuel and starts to change shape. Some become red giants or even explode as supernovas, scattering stuff into space, kind of like how your toys go flying everywhere after you drop a box. Then they might leave behind cool leftovers like white dwarfs or neutron stars, which are super dense, like squishing all your toys into one tiny ball.