KIC 8462852 Alien Megastructure Star Update 12/27/16 | Summary and Q&A

TL;DR

Recent research and papers suggest various natural phenomena explanations for the strange dimming events observed in Tabby's Star, but the possibility of an alien megastructure cannot be completely ruled out.

Key Insights

• 🤩 Several theories have been proposed to explain the dimming events in Tabby's Star, falling into categories such as the solar system, interstellar medium, orbit around the star, and the star itself.
• 😀 Theories involving our solar system face difficulties due to the star's location outside the ecliptic plane and weak evidence of potential periodicity in the dimming events.
• 😀 Explanations involving material in the interstellar medium or orbiting the star also face challenges, with the possibility of an alien megastructure remaining on the table.
• 🙂 Recent research suggests an internal phase shift in Tabby's Star as a potential cause, as well as the concept of stellar lifting, which could explain the strange features in the light curve.

Transcript

This is an update in my continuing coverage of the mysterious star KIC 8462852 or Tabby's star for December 27, 2016. For the full back story, I suggest checking out my other videos on this channel starting with my first update video from April of this year and my subsequent updates on this star. At this stage the star is being monitored every nigh... Read More

Questions & Answers

Q: What are some possible explanations for the dimming events observed in Tabby's Star?

Possible explanations include the presence of a cloud of material in our solar system, a geologically active object in the Kuiper Belt, a collision of comets in the Oort cloud, material in the interstellar medium, or material in orbit around the star itself.

Q: How likely is it that the dimming events are caused by an alien megastructure?

While the possibility of an alien megastructure cannot be completely ruled out, current research suggests that natural phenomena are more likely explanations. The rare and unusual nature of the events makes it difficult to pinpoint a specific cause.

Q: What is the significance of the smaller dips in brightness being related to the larger dips?

If the smaller dips are linked to the larger dips, it would weaken the argument for an alien megastructure. This suggests that the stellar flares and internal conditions of Tabby's Star are responsible for the strange brightness variations.

Q: What is the concept of stellar lifting proposed by Eduard Heindl?

Stellar lifting is a theoretical technology that would allow a civilization to extract and use the resources of their star. Heindl's theory suggests that this concept could explain the unusual features observed in the light curve of Tabby's Star.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Tabby's Star is being closely monitored for deep dimming events observed by the Kepler Spacecraft, but there have been no significant changes in brightness.

• Several theories have emerged to explain the dimming events, including the presence of a cloud of material in our solar system, a geologically active object in the Kuiper Belt, and a slow collision of comets in the Oort cloud.

• Other possibilities involve material in the interstellar medium or in orbit around the star itself, with recent papers suggesting an internal phase shift in Tabby's Star or the concept of stellar lifting as potential explanations.