What is a Dyson Sphere?

1 Answer
Oct 31, 2017

A Dyson Sphere is a Science Fiction artifact which was later used as a thought experiment by the physicist Freeman Dyson.

Explanation:

The idea of a Dyson Sphere is that a suitably advanced civilisation could create a hollow shell surrounding a star which would capture all of the star's energy.

Also, according to science fiction it would provide a huge habitable area on its inner surface.

Unfortunately, such an artifact is impossible. It would be impossible to keep the star at its centre. It would experience stresses which no known materials could withstand. It would also have no gravity. It could be made to spin to give an "artificial gravity" around its equator. Spinning the sphere would make the stresses worse.

The most practical form of a Dyson Sphere is a sphere of energy gathering satellites orbiting the star. This is more in line with Freeman Dyson's thought experiment. It would however require vast amounts of resources to build the satellites.