Dyson sphere

English

Etymology

Named after American theoretical physicist and mathematician Freeman Dyson, who originally described the concept in 1960.

Noun

Dyson sphere (plural Dyson spheres)

1. A hypothetical system of orbiting solar power satellites meant to completely encompass a star and capture its entire energy output.
   • 2020 March 2, Katie Mack, “Freeman Dyson’s Quest for Eternal Life”, in The New York Times‎^[2], →ISSN:

     To the public, he’s more famous for giving science fiction the “Dyson Sphere,” a hypothetical structure a future civilization could build to harness the entire power of its sun.

2. (science fiction) A solid shell of matter enclosing a star.
   • 1970 October, Larry Niven, Ringworld, →ISBN, page 106:

     "But there's more to a Dyson sphere than collecting solar power.
     "Say you make the sphere one astronomical unit in radius. You've got to clear out the solar system anyway, so you use all the solar planets in the construction. That gives you a shell of, say, chrome steel a few yards thick. Now you put gravity generators all over the shell. You'd have a surface area a billion times as big as the Earth's surface. A trillion people could wander all their lives without ever meeting one another."

   • 1992 October 12, Ronald D. Moore, “Relics”, in Star Trek: The Next Generation, season 7, episode 4, spoken by Scotty (James Doohan):

     Aye, an actual Dyson sphere. Can you imagine the engineering skills needed to even design such a structure?

   • 2005 August 19, Mitchell Porter, “Re: Paperclip monster, demise of.”, in SL4 mailing list‎^[3], message-ID <BAY103-F40D2C8C3B70C9EB8A834EACAB50@phx.gbl>:

     You could even extend the argument to say why, on purely selfish grounds, a benign intelligence might remain benevolently engaged with the rest of the universe, rather than hiding away in a Dyson sphere and literally wireheading itself - because the payoff for expansive engagement will necessarily eventually exceed any possible payoff accompanying solitary self-reconstruction.

   • 2017, BioWare, Mass Effect: Andromeda (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →OCLC, PC, scene: Meridian Codex entry:

     Meridian is a construct akin to a Dyson sphere: a vast, hollow shell encompassing a power source that provides heat and light to lush green biomes in the interior.

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:Dyson sphere.

Synonyms

• Dyson shell
• (system of satellites): Dyson swarm

Hypernyms

• megastructure

Coordinate terms

• Niven ring, Dyson ring
• Alderson disc / Alderson disk