Have you ever imagined a society where we not only used solar energy to power our homes, but literally absorbed all the energy emitted by its star? Yes, it sounds like something out of a movie, but it is a theoretical mega-construction idea by some scientists that would be able to completely surround the Sun to capture 100% of its radiation. Of course, even if possible, we have some big challenges: first, we need 328,000 GW out of the Earth; second, we would have to destroy Jupiter.
It seems we are wasting the sun’s energy
If we stop to think about it, every second that passes, the Sun releases an absurd amount of energy in all directions. However, the Earth captures only a tiny fraction of this radiation, and of course, even though it is small, it is more than enough to sustain all natural and human processes on the planet. However, more than 99% of this energy is being wasted in the vacuum of space.
So why not create a tool that can capture this energy in a more efficient way? Well, scientists have already thought about this and created the project: the Dyson Sphere. Basically, it will be a system, which could be a complete sphere or a cloud of orbital panels, positioned around the Sun to absorb all of its energy.
From then on, an entire society will be able to stop depending on the limited resources of its planet and work directly with the most abundant and constant source of energy in the solar system. However, before we really think about this future, we will need to deal with a more urgent question: where are we going to get so much material from to build such a gigantic structure?
328,000 GW out of the Earth
Well, are you ready for the answer? Because it’s shocking. To build the Dyson Sphere, it would take approximately 328,000 gigawatts of energy that could be harvested directly from the Sun. And to achieve this feat, we would need a structure with enough area to intercept this radiation. And to make matters worse, this structure would require raw materials that are nowhere near available on Earth.
According to science writer Jaime Green, author of the book The Possibility of Life, the only option (and perhaps the most realistic) would be to dismantle a giant planet, like Jupiter (by the way, Jupiter is Elon Musk’s next destination). This is because the planet has an immense gaseous mass and a composition rich in hydrogen and helium, which are the only accessible reserves in large quantities in the Solar System capable of providing enough material to build a sphere or orbital cloud around the Sun.
A new way of analyzing a civilization
There are several ways to assess whether a society is developing or not. One of them, which is not often discussed, is the Kardashev Scale. It measures the level of development of a civilization based on its ability to generate and use energy. So far, there are two types:
- Type 1: This is the stage we are in. Earth continues to use only the energy available on the planet.
- Type 2: This is where the Dyson Sphere would take us. This is where all the available energy from the host star is consumed.
With the Dyson Sphere, we would have a great evolutionary leap, because, according to the Kardashev, a civilization capable of operating outside the physical and economic limits of its planet would have technological autonomy, interplanetary mining and structures that defy even our imagination. This project would change everything as we know it today, and would surprise us just as when experts managed to achieve teleportation, allowing us to send information to another universe, it surprised us.
