Every star has an origin story—and it begins not with fire, but with cold. In the quiet dark of space, massive clouds of gas and dust collapse under gravity’s pull, sparking a cosmic chain reaction. Over millions of years, these collapsing clouds heat up, spin fast, and ignite into the blazing beacons we see twinkling in the night sky. From the humble beginnings of molecular clouds to the dramatic birth of newborn stars, this article unpacks the awe-inspiring science behind stellar formation—step by radiant step.