There are sound in space? This is a question that often leads to confusion and debate among people. Actually, the answer is somewhat complex and requires an understanding of how sound works and the characteristics of space. There are many scientific studies on the matter.
In this article we are going to tell you if there is sound in space, how it is transmitted and what are the necessary characteristics for it.
Is there sound in space?
When we think of sound, we usually associate it with our ears' ability to perceive the vibrations of particles in the air. On Earth, for example, Sound propagates through waves that travel in the gaseous medium that surrounds us. These sound waves vibrate our eardrums, allowing us to hear and perceive the world around us.
However, in space, the situation is quite different. Space is an almost perfect vacuum, with extremely low density. There are not enough particles in space for sound waves to propagate in the same way that they do on Earth. This means that, generally speaking, there is no sound in space as we know it here.
But that doesn't mean the space is completely silent. There are other forms of "sound" that can be detected in space. For example, astronomers use sophisticated instruments to pick up electromagnetic waves, such as radio waves, X-rays, and gamma rays, emitted by cosmic objects. These electromagnetic waves they can be translated into audible signals so scientists can better study and understand the universe.
Also, there are times when astronauts in space can hear certain sounds. For example, inside spacecraft, astronauts can hear noise from ventilation systems, equipment operation, and communications with Earth. These sounds are transmitted through vibrations in the structures of the spacecraft and are picked up by the ears of the astronauts.
How sound travels in space
When asked if there is sound in outer space, understood as outside planetary atmospheres and in interplanetary, interstellar and intergalactic environments, it can be answered that no sound is heard in a vacuum. the emptiness of outer space has few or no particles per cubic meter through which sound can travel, since sound requires a medium to travel efficiently. Sound waves travel at specific speeds depending on the medium through which they travel.
Since sound is just vibrating air and there is no vibrating air in space, it follows that there is no sound. If we were sitting in a spaceship and another spaceship exploded, we wouldn't hear a thing. Exploding bombs, crashing asteroids, supernovae, and burning planets are just as quiet in space.
Inside the spaceship, of course, you can hear the other crew members because the spaceship is full of air. Besides, a human being will always be able to hear himself speaking or breathing, as the air in the space suit that supports your life also carries sound. But two astronauts in space suits floating in space won't be able to speak directly, no matter how much they yell, even if they're just inches apart.
His inability to speak directly is not due to his headphones interfering, but rather the vacuum of space where there is no sound at all. That's why space suits are equipped with two-way radio communicators. Radio is a form of electromagnetic radiation that, like light, travels perfectly through the vacuum of space. The astronaut's transmitter converts the sound waveform into a radio waveform and sends the radio wave through space to another astronaut, where it is converted back to sound for others to hear.
sonification
For dramatic effect in all commercial space movies, movie theaters deliberately misrepresent this principle. The silent explosion of a spaceship wouldn't be as noticeable if you couldn't hear anything. But a saga like Star Wars describes the spectacular sound of ships firing lasers and the gigantic explosion of ships and planets.
What we can do is give sound to astronomical objects, which is what It's called sonifying. It is about converting the intensity of radiation, plasma, etc. in some unreal sounds of things that happen in space, which can give us a strange volume phenomenon. For example, a group of deep-sky galaxies imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope, particularly the center of a galaxy cluster known as RXC J0142. The same goes for the viral video of noise being made by a black hole.
There is an atmosphere on Mars, but it is so thin that human ears cannot hear sounds on Earth. Thanks to NASA's InSight mission, we can hear how the wind blows on Mars. On December 1, 2018, the spacecraft's seismometers and barometric pressure sensors detected vibrations in a 10 to 15 mph wind blowing from the Elysium region of Mars. The seismograph readings are well within the range of human hearing, but almost all bass is hard to hear on speakers and mobile devices.
To do this, the video has both the original audio and a version increased by two octaves to be able to listen to it on mobile devices. Barometric pressure sensor readings have been sped up 100 times to make them audible. The results are amazing. Although Mars has a very thin atmosphere compared to Earth, with an atmospheric pressure only 1% that of Earth, there are substantial levels of wind and dust storms both locally and globally.
I hope that with this information you can learn more about whether there is sound in space and how it is transmitted.