What is a Dyson Sphere, why is it relevant, and what does it imply? All of these questions will be answered in this comprehensive guide to solving this technological marvel, and it may even solve our global energy needs.
It is first important to understand what a Dyson Sphere is. A Dyson Sphere is a mega structure created by a technologically advanced civilization that harnesses close to the full energy output of their sun. This is done by encasing the star in a sphere to absorb its energy and then convert that energy into a usable fuel. This term was coined by Freeman Dyson, a renowned physicist and professor.
A Dyson Sphere is relevant to today, because it has the potential to solve all of our energy needs. It means that we would be harnessing close to 100% of the suns energy. Below is a model of what a potential Dyson Sphere may look like.
Image Credit: Popular Mechanics
How advanced does a civilization have to be in order to make one?
There is a scale that measures how advanced a civilization is. This scale is called the Kardashev Scale, and separates civilizations into three different types: Type 1, 2, and 3.
A type one civilization can harness all of the available energy on its own planet. This means that all of the wind and solar energy that comes to earth or is produced by earth, would be harnessed.
A type two civilization can harness all of the energy its parent star produces. This means that humans would be able to harness the energy directly from the sun, and send it back to earth for use.
A type three civilization can harness the energy of its entire galaxy. This means that humans would have to harness all of the energy the Milky Way produces.
Image Credit: PicBear
Currently, humans are at a Type 0 civilization. Our current standing is around .7 on the scale.
There is one star that hints at a Type 2 civilization, and it is called KIC 8462852. This star was being observed by Tabetha S. Boyajian (Check out her Ted Talk) whilst she was in the Kepler Telescope, which is why the star is also named Tabby’s Star. This star has had unusual light curves, which is almost never observed by scientists.
This references to a potential alien civilization that is advanced enough to build a mega structure around its sun to gain its full energy.
What are the implications for humans?
The implication of the Dyson Sphere is that it represents being able to solve the world’s energy issues. Having the ability to harness the power of the sun, would open up plenty of avenues for an increase in technology use.
Overall, the implementation of a Dyson Sphere would result in zero energy issues for earth in its current state. It would also imply that the human civilization has advanced exponentially in terms of technology.
Hopefully, within the next few hundred years we will register on the Kardashev Scale, and create legitimate change in our solar system.