Use the Sun's gravity to transmit interstellar signals

In the future, scientists will use the Sun's gravity to amplify signals in the universe to help astronauts transmit interstellar video.

In the future, scientists will use the Sun's gravity to amplify signals in the universe to help astronauts transmit interstellar video.


  1. It takes hundreds of thousands of years for light to travel from the center of the Sun to Earth?
  2. Why do humans not bring waste to the Sun?

Use the Sun's gravity to transmit interstellar signals Picture 1Use the Sun's gravity to transmit interstellar signals Picture 1
Humans can take advantage of the gravity of the Sun to amplify signals in the universe.(Artwork: Internet.)

Michael Hippke, an astrophysicist, proposed using the Sun's gravitational force to transmit interstellar video at a distance of four light years, equivalent to the distance from Earth to the Alpha Centauri star system.

According to Hippke, to be able to do that, we need to place a lens with a diameter of 1 meter at a point about 90 billion km from the Sun, a signal relay position with maximum efficiency thanks to the effect. Attractive lenses were predicted by Albert Einstein.

Why must a lens be placed in such a remote place? That's because space is bent around a large object, like the Sun, that can amplify signals. If installed on Earth, to have a device with the same strong signal transmission capability, we need an area with a diameter of about 53 km, greater than New York City area, USA.

With this method, the current human science and technology can be met but difficult at a distance of 90 billion kilometers from the Sun. Historically, humans have been able to take only one 20.8 billion km away from Earth. It was the Voyager 1, achieved after 40 years of flying. At closer distances, any signal amplification is blocked by the Sun.

In the opinion of Slava Turyshev, a physicist at NASA's Propulsion Engine Laboratory, Hippke's plan, though challenging, is not impossible.

According to Hippke: " This is easier to implement than installing a Hubble space telescope" .

The method of using the Sun's gravity to amplify signals in the universe will play an important role in building the signaling system of future interstellar space exploration missions.

Without signal amplification, we will have to install giant telescopes on Earth and launch large ships to carry huge amounts of energy.

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