9 Cool AF Space Sounds That Will Actually Relax You
There may be no sound in space, but that doesn't mean you can't turn space data into some of the most alien sounds imaginable!
1. First things first: Let's blast off with the oddly relaxing noise of an Atlas V rocket launching.
These are the the rockets NASA uses to launch many unmanned missions into Earth's orbit and beyond.
2. Now that we are in space, here's what a comet's magnetic field sorta sounds like:
3. And here is the satisfying thump the Philae lander made when it actually LANDED ON THAT SAME COMET:
Sensors designed to sense vibrations from landing registered Philae's first touchdown. This is not an actual sound recording but an audio adaption of the vibrations the detectors recorded. If there were an atmosphere on the comet, it would have sounded pretty close to this.
4. Here's some freaky alien-sounding radio transmissions from Saturn:
Saturn emits an ever-changing chorus of radio frequencies that are related to the intense auroras seen on the poles of planet. These auroras (like the northern/southern lights on Earth) come from the planet's magnetic field interacting with solar wind. To make the frequencies audible to the human ear, the noise has been slowed about 44 times.
6. These are the noise-ified radar blips made as the Huygens spacecraft landed on Saturn's moon Titan:
These noises were created by converting the radar echoes used for navigation during the probe's final descent into audible sounds. As Huygens approaches the ground, the pitch and intensity of the noises increase.
7. Good news! Titan has an atmosphere and the Huygen's lander had some microphones. Here's what it would have sounded like if you were making the landing yourself:
Scientists with the European Space Agency made this recording in a lab using the sounds heard by Huygens' microphones. It contains several sound samples taken at different times during the descent.
8. Here are the sounds of interstellar "tsunami waves" captured by the Voyager 1 spacecraft after it left our solar system:
These "waves" are caused by massive explosions from the Sun that eject plasma into the solar system. The plasma travels all the way into interstellar space, where it disturbs the plasma already hanging out in that void. That disturbance is what you are hearing. This has been sped up considerably.
9. That was quite a trip. Might as well end with the pleasant suction sound of going to the bathroom on the International Space Station:
NASA's high tech toilet uses suction to get rid of human waste. Astronaut Chris Hadfield describes the experience as "kinda windy."
