TED-Ed: The dust bunnies that built our planet - Lorin Swint Matthews

The video explores the formation of cosmic dust and stars, starting from a cloud of dust and gas. It delves into the forces that allow dust to clump together, such as van der Waals and electrostatic forces. The mystery of chondrules, solid pellets found in meteorites, is discussed, along with how they form and stick together. Finally, the video explains how these dust particles grow into larger bodies, eventually forming planets through random collisions.

How does the environment of a protoplanetary disk affect the growth of dust clusters?

What is the proposed mechanism that allows dust pellets to stick together?

Explain the significance of random collisions in the formation of planets.