, July 10 -- Scientists searching for signs of intelligent extraterrestrial life say some of the coldest objects in the Milky Way may not be stars at all but massive energy-collecting structures built by advanced alien civilizations.

A new study by Amirnezam Amiri of the University of Arkansas explores how these hypothetical "Dyson swarms" would appear through modern telescopes and identifies the types of stars most likely to host them. The research is currently available as a preprint on arXiv and is scheduled for publication in the journal Universe.

The idea of a Dyson sphere was first proposed by physicist Freeman Dyson in 1960. Rather than a solid shell surrounding a star, scientists now believe an advanced civilization would more l...