Produced by: Mohsin Shaikh
Representative pic
A study led by the University of Manchester analyzed Dyson sphere candidates, searching for signs of advanced extraterrestrial civilizations. Initial results suggested promising detections—until further scrutiny revealed a different reality.
Representative pic
While SETI has historically focused on radio signals, researchers are now exploring megastructures like Dyson spheres. These structures, if real, could indicate civilizations harnessing the energy of entire stars.
Project Hephaistos, Sweden’s first dedicated SETI effort, scanned 5 million stars for technosignatures. Among the findings were seven candidates that appeared to emit excess infrared radiation—a possible Dyson sphere signature.
Representative pic
Ph.D. student Tongtian Ren and his team investigated these candidates, only to find many were contaminated by background sources, particularly active galactic nuclei (AGN) that mimic the signals expected from Dyson spheres.
Credit: ESO.org
The team suspected that these anomalies could be dust-obscured galaxies (DOGs), which appear faint in visible light but emit strong infrared radiation—closely resembling a theoretical Dyson sphere’s waste heat.
Representative pic/NASA
Inspired by past research, including work by Professor Jason T. Wright, the team considered whether a true Dyson sphere civilization might use radio emissions to expel waste heat, making them detectable through SETI searches.
Representative pic
According to astrophysicist Michael Garrett, a Kardashev Type II civilization—capable of harnessing the energy of an entire star—could theoretically emit detectable technosignatures. However, these findings may not confirm such a discovery yet.
Some Dyson sphere candidates had clear AGN contamination, but others remain unconfirmed. The team stresses that further high-resolution radio observations are needed to determine if any true artificial structures exist.
Representative pic
With major observatories like Gaia decommissioned, large-scale Dyson sphere searches may not happen again for decades. Researchers emphasize that these seven candidates must be rigorously examined before drawing final conclusions.