Potential signs of extraterrestrial technologies detected around 7 nearby stars

Scientists have recently detected potential signs of advanced extraterrestrial technologies around at least seven stars in our galaxy. These observations have generated significant interest among researchers exploring the possibility of intelligent life beyond Earth.


In 1960, theoretical physicist Freeman Dyson proposed that technologically advanced extraterrestrial civilizations might build gigantic structures, known as Dyson spheres, around their stars to capture their energy. These megastructures would enable these civilizations to efficiently harvest the energy emitted by their star to meet their growing needs.

Recently, researchers used a computer program to analyze more than five million stars in our galaxy, searching for excess infrared emissions (IR excesses) that could indicate the presence of Dyson spheres. These infrared emissions are a key technosignature, corresponding to the heat emitted by a Dyson sphere surrounding a star.

The results of this analysis, published on May 6 in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, identified seven stars, all red dwarfs, as potential candidates. These stars are located within 1,000 light-years of Earth, our cosmic neighborhood. By comparison, our galaxy has a diameter 100 times larger.

The researchers took care to rule out other possible natural sources of IR excesses, such as nebulae and debris disks, to minimize false positives. A similar study, published in March on arXiv, also found potential candidates among five million studied stars, although these results have not yet been peer-reviewed.

If these observations are confirmed, they could have significant implications for our understanding of extraterrestrial civilizations. The detection of Dyson spheres would indicate that technologically advanced civilizations exist and are capable of manipulating stellar energy on a massive scale.

The next steps include follow-up observations with more powerful instruments like the James Webb Space Telescope. These observations will confirm the presence of IR excesses and search for other signs of intelligent life in these stellar systems.