How did Earth form from planetesimals in the early solar system?

Earth formed through the process of accretion within the solar nebula, a rotating disk of gas and dust that remained after the Sun formed approximately 4.56 billion years ago.312

The formation process occurred in several stages:

• Condensation and Aggregation: Mineral grains within the cooling nebula collided and stuck together, forming larger fragments. These fragments continued to aggregate, eventually creating planetesimals—boulder-to-asteroid-sized bodies that served as the building blocks of the planets.342
• Gravitational Growth: As planetesimals grew, their increasing gravitational attraction allowed them to sweep up more rock and metallic fragments. This growth was further influenced by the gravity of Jupiter, which perturbed the orbits of these "embryos," facilitating their continued collision and growth into Earth-sized bodies over tens of millions of years.325
• Differentiation: As Earth grew, it heated up due to radioactive decay, gravitational energy, and impacts. This heat caused the planet to partially melt, allowing dense metallic materials to sink and form the core, while lighter materials rose to form the crust.236