1. an early stage in the formation of a galaxy, consisting of a large cloud of gas and dust that has not yet condensed into stars
Usage: astronomy

Examples

• Astronomers detected several protogalaxies in the distant universe using powerful telescopes.
• The protogalaxy contained vast amounts of hydrogen gas that would eventually form billions of stars.
• Scientists study protogalaxies to understand how modern galaxies like the Milky Way formed.
• This protogalaxy existed when the universe was only a few billion years old.
• The collapse of the protogalaxy’s gas clouds marked the beginning of star formation.
• Researchers identified the protogalaxy by its distinctive infrared signature.