Dyson spheres are theoretical constructs that harvest the entire energy output of a given star by completely enclosing it.[1][2][3] They are named after physicist Freeman Dyson, who proposed the concept in 1960.[1][3] A precursor to the concept of Dyson spheres was featured in the 1937 novel Star Maker by Olaf Stapledon.[1] Fictional Dyson spheres are typically solid structures forming a continuous shell around the star in question, although Dyson himself considered that prospect mechanically implausible and instead proposed multiple separate objects independently orbiting the star.[2][3] It is a type of Big Dumb Object.[4]
Dyson spheres are often a background element in fiction, such as in the 1964 novel The Wanderer by Fritz Leiber where aliens enclose multiple stars in this way.[1][4][5] Dyson spheres are depicted in the 1975–1983 book series Saga of Cuckoo by Frederik Pohl and Jack Williamson, and one functions as the setting of Bob Shaw's 1975 novel Orbitsville and its sequels.[2][3] Variations on the concept include the single circular band of a Dyson sphere without the rest of the sphere in Larry Niven's 1970 novel Ringworld,[3][6][7] the halved Dyson sphere in the 2012 novel Bowl of Heaven by Gregory Benford and Niven,[2][3] and nested Dyson spheres—also known as a Matrioshka brain—as in Colin Kapp's 1980s Cageworld series and Brian Stableford's 1979–1990 Asgard trilogy.[1][3]
References
- ^ a b c d e Stableford, Brian M. (2006). "Dyson, Freeman (John) (1923–)". Science Fact and Science Fiction: An Encyclopedia. Taylor & Francis. pp. 132–133. ISBN 978-0-415-97460-8.
- ^ a b c d
- Westfahl, Gary (2021-07-19). "Artificial Worlds". Science Fiction Literature through History: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. pp. 135–136. ISBN 978-1-4408-6617-3.
- Westfahl, Gary (2021-07-19). "Stars". Science Fiction Literature through History: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. 603. ISBN 978-1-4408-6617-3.
- ^ a b c d e f g Clute, John; Langford, David; Sleight, Graham (eds.). "Dyson Sphere". The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (4th ed.). Archived from the original on 2011-10-28. Retrieved 2021-11-18.
- ^ a b Pringle, David, ed. (1997). "Space Habitats". The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Science Fiction: The Definitive Illustrated Guide. Carlton. p. 50. ISBN 978-1-85868-385-0.
- ^ Stableford, Brian (1999). "Fritz Leiber". In Bleiler, Richard (ed.). Science Fiction Writers: Critical Studies of the Major Authors from the Early Nineteenth Century to the Present Day (2nd ed.). New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. p. 441. ISBN 0-684-80593-6. OCLC 40460120.
- ^ Nicholls, Peter (1983). "Far-future energy". In Nicholls, Peter (ed.). The Science in Science Fiction. New York: Knopf. pp. 44–45. ISBN 0-394-53010-1. OCLC 8689657.
- ^ Mann, George (2001). "Dyson Sphere". The Mammoth Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers. p. 477. ISBN 978-0-7867-0887-1.