A Dyson Sphere is a theoretical structure built around a star to tap all of its energy. It¡¯s pure science fiction. But our Big Tech overlords seem determined to build a Dollar-Store Dyson Sphere around Earth, surrounding it with enough orbiting solar panels and data centers to blot out the stars.
In theory, a Dyson Sphere is evidence of a highly advanced civilization. In our reality, the Dollar-Store Dyson Sphere suggests our civilization might be making too many expensive, complicated solutions for problems that don¡¯t really exist.
Meta Platforms recently?announced a deal with Virginia-based startup Overview Energy to someday buy up to 1 gigawatt of power generated by Overview¡¯s also-theoretical space-based solar energy technology. This would involve 1,000 satellites in geosynchronous orbit (GEO) collecting the sun¡¯s energy and then zapping it in infrared beams to panels on the ground 22,000 miles below. Easy-peasy.
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