Britannica
Sources used in this answer
How long does a Sun-like star take to reach the main sequence?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Star
Stars in the open cluster NGC 290, as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope.
A star with a mass similar to the Sun typically requires tens of millions of years to reach the main sequence.
During this pre-main-sequence phase, the protostar contracts, with the release of gravitational energy serving as its primary source of radiant energy. As the star continues to contract, it moves toward the main sequence on the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram. Once the central temperature reaches approximately K, hydrogen fusion ignites in the core, marking the star's arrival on the main sequence.12