Space

Video for your ears: What do planets sound like?

Here’s something you don’t hear everyday. This video presents NASA Space Sounds, giving you an idea of what different objects in our solar system might sound like, if you could hear them. More specifically, it’s a translation of electromagnetic vibrations from various planetary environments into sound.

The recordings were made in the vicinity of Earth, Jupiter, Jupiter’s moon Io, Saturn, Saturn’s rings, Uranus, Uranus’ moon Miranda, Uranus’ rings and Neptune. Eerie, right? Hope you enjoy!

So what are these sounds again? Some spacecraft have instruments capable of capturing radio emissions. What you’re hearing are the result of scientists’ conversion of these radio emissions to sound waves. Instruments on NASA’s Voyager, INJUN 1, ISEE 1 and HAWKEYE space probes were used to record the vibrations of different objects in our solar system. Says NASA:

The recorded sounds are the complex interactions of charged electromagnetic particles from the solar wind, ionisphere, and planetary magnetosphere.

This video – though an oldie (from 2010) – is pretty cool.

For live 24-hour sound from space, visit Radio Astronomy’s page.

Bottom line: A 2010 video presenting NASA Space Sounds: what happens when spacecraft are used to record radio emissions, which are then converted to sound waves.

Posted 
May 30, 2013
 in 
Space

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