Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
h a l f b a k e r y
Go ahead. Stick a fork in it.

idea: add, search, annotate, link, view, overview, recent, by name, random

meta: news, help, about, links, report a problem

account: browse anonymously, or get an account and write.

user:
pass:
register,


                       

Please log in.
Before you can vote, you need to register. Please log in or create an account.

Make Earth invisible to other planets

Sure Copperfield is okay... but he couldn't make a planet disapear.
  (+3)
(+3)
  [vote for,
against]

So, we can see exoplanets but only if they orbit their respective stars at a tilt which casts a shadow away from their star in our angle of perspective.
Wavelengths of light passing through the atmospheres of these worlds can reveal a lot about the gasses comprising these various atmospheres.
Planets not passing in front of their stars are invisible to us aside from gravitational perturbations.

Well...
...that works two ways which means that other planets with the right angle to see us cast our shadow at them can tell we are here and what our atmosphere is comprised of.
If other civilizations are advanced enough to do so, and if expansion and colonization of other worlds is a common trait among species, then we would be pretty ripe pickins.

I propose a colossal undertaking whereby the peoples of Earth endeavour to launch and attach the framework of a gossamer thin series of, planet-and-atmosphere diameter, Fresnel lenses to orbit the world in-line with our star.

The focal distance of these lenses would be such that from our perspective the sun looks just like it did albeit a bit blurry.
From an outside perspective though the light from our star would warp and scatter at angles which could not be detected from any single exo planet previously able to do so.

We would just vanish...

...and then we start on the Dyson sphere!


[link]






       Cool link [a1]!
2016 eh?
  

       This one was so out there that I didn't even think of searching before posting.
Diffusing laser light does make more sense than orbiting planet wide Fresnel lenses... or maybe that's just what 'they' want us to think.
  

       Orbiting Fresnel lenses would not be subject to power fluctuations and outages.   

       So... nobody has a take on making the earth invisible?   

       Really?   

       Okay, I guess I'll just be over here trying to save the world all by myself.   

       As you all were.   

       + I will help you! You just have to tell me what to do.
xandram, Jun 08 2022
  

       It seems to be working, I can't see the planet earth this morning.
pocmloc, Jun 08 2022
  

       Messing with out star's apparent output frequencies is a guaranteed way of attracting interest from anything watching.
Voice, Jun 08 2022
  

       I would suggest doing the exact opposite. At this point in time as global warming and mass extinctions accelerate, supplemented by tidal waves of plastic everywhere, it looks like only an alien species could save us from our own idiotic greedy self destruction.
xenzag, Jun 08 2022
  

       // I will help you! You just have to tell me what to do.//   

       Hold my beer [xan].   

       //I can't see the planet earth this morning.//   

       Have you tried looking down?   

       //Messing with our star's apparent output frequencies is a guaranteed way of attracting interest from anything watching.//   

       hmmm, yes, but only those who are already watching.
Anyone watching after the fact would be completely clueless, unless they received light from our star far enough away as to see us in the distant past, as it would appear to them to be our stars normal output. We can't do much about those already in the know.
It should only be our own galaxy we need to worry about for right now.
It may also very well be a right of passage as far as a larger galactic group may be concerned.
The ability and awareness to clothe ourselves.
  

       //it looks like only an alien species could save us from our own idiotic greedy self destruction.//   

       Ah horseshit!
Evil always tries to take over. It's a never ending cycle. They always enact a Ponzi and play the game of get-as-much-as-you-can and get out before the burst.
They never win.
Ever.
  

       "They" always underestimate the will of man. No decent human being ever wants to fight if they can help it. This is played upon until enough folks get backed into enough corners that shit blows up in their faces.   

       Over   

       and over   

       and over again... until enough of us can stay awake long enough to break the cycle.   

       My gut says it's not too far off now, and then many hands will make short work of fixing their fuckery.   

       This shit ain't over by a long shot.   

       //Anyone watching after the fact would be completely clueless//   

       They would wonder why our star has a unique output.
Voice, Jun 09 2022
  

       //Have you tried looking down?// You guys are way too techy for me. Can't you give more simple suggestions?
pocmloc, Jun 09 2022
  

       //They would wonder why our star has a unique output//   

       Would they?
Have 'we' ever looked for planets who's passage across their stars may have skewed the data because of obfuscation? or have we just collected data without having ever asked the question and applied it?
  

       There's an awful lot of data to sift through out there... would a single stars fluctuations really raise that much notice?   

       //You guys are way too techy for me. Can't you give more simple suggestions?//   

       You need to be outdoors first.   

       Hey and I can hold two beers!
xandram, Jun 11 2022
  
      
[annotate]
  


 

back: main index

business  computer  culture  fashion  food  halfbakery  home  other  product  public  science  sport  vehicle