What is the name of a large cloud of gas and dust from which solar systems are formed?

The correct term for a large cloud of gas and dust from which solar systems are formed is known as a solar nebula. This concept is rooted in the process of star and planet formation. A solar nebula consists primarily of hydrogen and helium, with some heavier elements, and it represents the remnants of previous stars that exploded in supernova events.

As a solar nebula collapses under its own gravity, it begins to spin and flatten into a disc shape. This process facilitates the formation of a protostar at the center and the aggregation of dust and gas into larger bodies that can eventually form planets, moons, and other celestial bodies. The model of the solar nebula helps to explain the current configuration of our Solar System, where the planets orbit the Sun in a relatively flat plane and in the same direction.

The other terms mentioned do not specifically refer to the initial state of material from which solar systems arise. A planetary disc would refer to the disc around a star where planets are forming, the galactic core is the center of a galaxy usually containing a supermassive black hole, and a stellar cloud is more general and does not specifically denote the formation of solar systems. Thus, in the context of solar system formation, solar nebula is