KIC 8462852

KIC 8462852 or, Tabby’s Star, is located somewhere in the night sky (within the constellation of Cygnus toward the Eastern sky) and has been getting astronomers knickers in a twist for the past few years.

This distant star appears to have a dimmer switch and nobody really knows why.

Since 2011 scientists have been looking at this far away star amongst many others, watching and waiting for the slight fluctuations that may indicate orbiting planets, only this particular star has been dimming a lot more than anybody expected.

In some cases it has been seen to dim by around 20% before returning to normal, which is far more than is should.

This has led to some people to suggest that this star is surrounded by what has been coined a Dyson sphere.

A Dyson sphere is a hypothetical super massive construction that surrounds a star in order to harness all of the power.

Think of a huge solar power plant the size of our solar system and you will be in the right area.

A Dyson sphere is an impossibility for us mere Humans but the thought is that a significantly advanced alien race MAY be able to create such a device and that is what SOME people think we are witnessing around KIC 8462852.

It could be that this dimming effect is the light from the star being hidden by the Dyson sphere and returning to full luminosity through gaps that may be there due to unfinished construction or design.

It could also be massive clouds of dust and broken bits of comets in close orbit, whizzing round and round blocking the light as huge clumps of space crud drift in and out of our view of the Star.

As it stands nobody knows just why this star is doing the weird things it is, but as with most scientific curiosities, the brainiacs are studying it and learning more and more each time something occurs…

...In the meantime, conspiracy theorists are having a field day making up allsorts of bullshit about things that were made up anyway and using these theories as fact in order to prove their own gibberish.

I like a good conspiracy theory but for me they have to be cleverly constructed and not just “Because - little green men”. That’s lazy.

That’s the equivalent of a children's story where it turns out it was all dream all along and nothing actually happened…. Or did it? (no it didn’t).

But as much as I love a conspiracy theory I much more enjoy a good mystery and KIC 8462852 is a one of cosmic proportions.

Keep watching the skies!