“What Does the Sun Sound Like? NASA Reveals the Amazing Noise in Space”

• Wondering what space sounds like?
• NASA released the sound of the Sun

For a long time it was assumed that there was absolute silence in space. But a new NASA sound recording proves the exact opposite. The sun sounds like it’s humming under its breath.

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What does the Sun sound like?

Although the authors of science fiction films often try to convince us otherwise, space is a very quiet place. As is known, sound does not travel in a vacuum, so even if you were to watch, for example, a dramatic collision between a planet and an asteroid, the exciting scene of apocalyptic proportions will still be a mute and boring spectacle for you.

On the other hand, this does not mean that space objects do not make any sounds. The evidence was previously provided by scientists from MIT who, using sonification, were able to record the sound emitted by the huge black hole at the center of the Perseus galaxy cluster.

This time, experts focused on the Sun, which pumps so much energy into space that it heats and illuminates not only our entire planet, but also the rest of the solar system. Not only does the star emit incredible light and heat, but it is also very loud.

Craig DeForest, a leading heliophysicist in the Southwest Research Institute’s Space Studies Division, in a Reddit thread disassembleshow loud we would hear the Sun if sound could hypothetically travel through space as it does through Earth’s atmosphere.

He explained to users that the Sun would theoretically emit a sound of around 100 decibels, comparable to standing next to a speaker at a rock concert or a busy nightclub. When we consider that the Sun is 150 million kilometers away from us, it is impressive to say the least.

It’s kind of creepy

We have a fairly clear idea of ​​the sound coming from the Sun thanks to many cutting-edge scientific instruments, such as the Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI) on board the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), located 1.5 million kilometers from Earth .

According to DeForest, sound from the Sun travels at frequencies that the human ear cannot perceive. Moreover, it is not a single tone, but a complex pattern of acoustic waves, somewhat similar to a church bell.

To hear the Sun with our own ears, scientists had to speed up the sound ten thousand times, compressing weeks of “vibrations” into a few seconds. The result you can play is therefore very subtle and filtered. It’s a low, pulsating hum – a little creepy, but strangely comforting in a way.

Preview photo source: NASA, source: iflscience