NASA uses data sonification to produce sounds of black hole, galaxy and nebula

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has left people flabbergasted by turning dry, lifeless data from black holes, galaxies, and stars into music. While it is impossible to hear the sound of the universe, owing to the fact that it is nothing but a vacuum, NASA  used the process of data sonification to create their sounds. In an online statement, the space agency revealed that all the data was collected using Chandra X-ray Observatory and other telescopes. 

Three astonishing sounds 

The first clip they shared was that of Chandra Deep Field South and represented the space telescope observing over seven million seconds of time. Describing the video, NASA wrote “Almost all these different coloured dots are black holes or galaxies. Most of the former are supermassive black holes that reside at the centres of galaxies. In this data sonification, the colours dictate the tones as the bar moves from the bottom of the image to the top. More specifically, colours toward the red end of the rainbow are heard as low tones while colours towards purple are assigned to higher ones. The light that appears bright white in the image is heard as white noise.”

The second video they shared was that of Cat’s Eye Nebula. NASA revealed that when stars run out of helium to burn, they blow off clouds of dust and gas. It was these “spectacular” bubbles from the Cat’s eye nebula which were captured by the Chandra and Hubble telescopes and were now turned into sounds. 

“To listen to these data, there is a radar-like scan that moves clockwise emanating from the centre point to produce pitch. The light that is further from the centre is heard as higher pitches while brighter light is louder. The X-rays are represented by a harsher sound, while the visible light data sound smoother. The circular rings create a constant hum, interrupted by a few sounds from spokes in the data," NASA detailed in a statement. 

The third clip features Messier 51 (M51) galaxy)  or Whirlpool galaxy. As with the Cat's Eye, the sonification begins at the top and moves radially around the image in a clockwise direction. The radius is mapped to notes of a melodic minor scale. Each wavelength of light in the image obtained from NASA telescopes in space (infrared, optical, ultraviolet, and X-ray) is assigned to a different frequency range,” NASA said adding that a constant low hum associated with the bright core can be constantly heard. 

Image Credits: NASA