Transcript: In both the early and late phases of stellar evolution a star can lose mass. The mass in the outer envelope can be ejected into interstellar space where it can form material to take part in the creation of a new generation of stars. Mass loss is most spectacular among evolved stars where the behavior of the outer atmosphere becomes decoupled from the behavior of the hot, dense stellar core. For example in blue supergiants the mass loss rate is enormous. Roughly one solar mass of gas can be lost every hundred thousand years of the star’s main sequence lifetime, and so the star can lose a total of one third to one half of its total mass by ejection into interstellar space. For red giants the mass loss rates are smaller, and such stars can be thought to have a smooth stellar wind that slowly leaks gas and dust into the interstellar medium. For stars like the Sun and main sequence stars in general mass loss occurs at a very small rate.