Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Earth A Rogue Planet? A Wandering World?
Well, there's no lack of imagination in this story!
Could Earth ever become a rogue planet? https://t.co/yswTiqTnGR
— Jeff Patterson (@JeffPatterson11) July 29, 2023
In about 5 billion years, the sun will die.But as it ages, it will get brighter and hotter, and by about 500 million years from now, our star will have heated Earth beyond redemption. But is there any way to save our planet from its disastrous demise?
Indeed, there is. Our distant descendants could steal energy from Jupiter's orbit and give it to Earth. But if they got it wrong, they'd send our planet careening out of the solar system.
To save Earth, we'd have to raise its orbit, keeping it safely away from the ever-angrier sun. Raising Earth's orbit would require energy, but thankfully, our solar system has heaps of energy available in the form of Jupiter's orbit.
Science fiction writers have had lots of fun with this idea over the years. One of the earliest is this description of wandering worlds from When Worlds Collide, a 1932 yarn by Edwin Balmer and Philip Wylie.
Bronson's calculations revealed to him that these wandering spheres would pass very close to the earth, make a circuit of our sun, and turn back toward space and infinity. The larger of the two wandering worlds would strike and annihilate the earth. Finer and more delicate calculations tended to show that the smaller body, which was of the same magnitude as the earth, would be "caught" by the sun and held in an orbit between the courses of Mars and Venus...
It was probably golden age great Edmond Hamilton who had the idea for moving worlds and rearranging solar systems, since he wrote about steering a star in his 1928 classic Crashing Suns.
For more details on how sf authors thought about how to restructure solar systems, take a look at Moving Whole Planets, Revisited.
Check out this true story - A Rogue Planet - Right In Our Neighborhood!.
See also the Xenephrene Interstellar World from A Brand New World (1942) by Ray Cummings, the rogue planet from Poul Anderson's 1967 novel Satan's World and the rogue world from George R.R. Martin's 1977 novel Dying of the Light.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 7/11/2023)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )
Related News Stories - (" Space Tech ")
First Trips To Mars Announced By Elon Musk
'I had determined that my first attempt should be a visit to Mars.' Percy Greg, 1880.
Lava Tubes On Moon And Mars
'...it never was built, or anything like that; it's just a big volcanic bubble.' - Robert Heinlein, 1957.
SpaceX EVA Spacesuit Tested By Polaris Dawn Crew
'Now, except for weight and heat, the same conditions prevail in this chamber as in space.' - Otto Willi Gail, 1929.
ESA To Build Moon Bases Brick By Printed LEGO Brick
'We made a crude , small cell and were delighted - and, I admit, somewhat surprised - to find it worked.' - John W. Campbell, 1950.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
California Fireman Arrested For Starting Fires
'Fire is bright and fire is clean.'
Robots Need A Better Sense Of Touch
'First, it rubbed my arms...'
MouthPad Supports Head And Tongue Tracking
'The operation that had transformed half his body... had located the control switchboard in his teeth.'
REALLY Remote Control Excavators
'It takes over a second for the signal to get to the Moon...'
Disney Helping Robots Dance
Dance, Robots, Dance.
Kolors Virtual-Try-On Predicted, And TRIED, By Harry Harrison
'Bill blinked at his own face under the plumed helmet...'
Detecting Drones In Ukraine With Candy (Sukork)
'...a robot detector circuit closed, activating a bell."
Nevada Will Use AI To Decide Worker Benefits
'They had screwed up and been blacklisted by Manna.'
Tether Cryptocurrency Flow Rate US$190Bn Per Day
'Alex did not find it surprising that people... were electronically minting their own cash.'
First Trips To Mars Announced By Elon Musk
'I had determined that my first attempt should be a visit to Mars.'
WaPOCHI Micro-Mobility Robot Follows Like A Pet With Your Bags
To follow the user like a pet while carrying their cargo!
Ultra-Realistic Robotic Arowana Robo-Fish
'Deveet unhooked his catch and laid it on the bank beside him. It was a metal fish.'
GITAI R1 Lunar Rover Like NASA Robonaut Centaur
'...waldoes in the screen followed in exact, simultaneous parallelism.'
Meshworm Soft Robot, With Peristaltic Crawling, Is Getting Better
'Seen close it was not completely flexible, but made instead of pivoted and smoothly finished segments.'
Mushroom 'Robot' Is Just A Start
'Some unknown race ... decided to help them out.'
Tesla Electric 'Giga Train' Operational In Germany
'...the cars are wedge-shaped at both ends.'
