Previously, we left off at a type 1 civilization
slowly progressing towards a type 2 in the last video.
If you haven't seen the previous videos, check them out, the link is in the description below!
Today we are going to talk about a type 2 civilization
and some of its defining characteristics!
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A type 2 civilization is sometimes referred to as an interstellar civilization.
It is capable of harnessing the total energy output of its home star.
And we are not just talking about transforming starlight into energy,
we are talking complete control of the star.
So how would a civilization manage to do that?
Well, in 1960, physicist Freeman Dyson proposed the idea of a megastructure.
It is now commonly referred to as the Dyson Sphere and has many variations since its conception.
The simplest of these megastructures utilized by a type 2 civilization would be a Dyson Ring.
It would be made up of a ring of solar power collectors
in orbit around its star with an average radius of 100 million miles.
But having just one ring wouldn't be enough.
To harness all of the power of its star, a type 2 civilization would use many Dyson Rings
in orbit around its star giving rise to a Dyson Swarm. There are other variations
of this like a Dyson Bubble which would use satellites instead of solar power collectors.
These satellites would be suspended by the use of enormous light sails using
radiation pressure to counteract the pull of gravity from the star.
Another variation would be a Dyson Shell, which would be a uniform
solid shell of matter around the star intercepting 100% of the star’s energy output.
A Dyson Shell is usually used to represent advanced
civilizations in popular movies and T.V shows.
It is believed that a type 2 civilization would not just build these megastructures,
but also live in them and completely control what goes on inside them. But regardless of its design,
a type 2 civilization would be capable of extracting every ounce of energy of its host star.
So in terms of its energy usage, a type 2 civilization would consume around 10^26
watts or more depending on the size of its star and other such factors.
This would allow it to control the orbit of all planets in that system,
harvest asteroids, and comets, and basically consume the entire solar system.
Unwanted collisions with asteroids or comets or even
stray planets would be completely avoidable for a type 2 civilization.
They would simply vaporize the object before it collides or just move
other planets in their system in its path.
Now that kind of power would be pretty awesome!
So will humanity ever attain this level of control and become a type 2 civilization?
It might be possible.
If we keep advancing without destroying ourselves,
it is estimated that we might be able to reach type 2 status in about 1000-2000 years from now.
Of course, we need to reach type 1 first and then take it from there.
Now, once a type 2 civilization starts to consume its entire star
system, it will most likely start to expand to other systems in its galaxy.
As a type 2 civilization expands and
consumes multiple solar systems and progresses to a type 2.1 and beyond,
it will soon set its eyes on its entire galaxy.
This would be the beginning of its transition to becoming a type 3 civilization.
But that is a topic for another time!
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Until then, we’ll see you in the next one!