The core of our Milky Way galaxy is densely packed with gas, dust, stars, and stellar remnants, but its centerpiece is a monster black hole with a mass of 4 million Suns called Sagittarius A* (pronounced “A-star”).

This sonification tracks an image of the galactic center captured by NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, Hubble Space Telescope, and Spitzer Space Telescope in X-ray, optical, and infrared light, respectively. A different instrument represents each observatory, with a xylophone for Chandra, a violin for Hubble and a soft piano for Spitzer. The translation begins on the left side of the image and moves to the right, with sounds representing the positions and brightness of the sources. The light of objects located toward the top of the image have higher pitch, while the intensity of the light controls the volume. Stars and compact sources emerge as individual notes, while extended clouds of gas and dust produce an evolving drone. A crescendo happens in the brightest region of the image, where the supermassive black hole resides. The Hubble image outlines energetic regions where stars are being born, while Spitzer’s infrared data show glowing clouds of dust containing complex structures. X-rays from Chandra reveal gas heated to millions of degrees from stellar explosions and outflows from Sagittarius A*. 

Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO; Optical: NASA/STScI; IR: Spitzer NASA/JPL-Caltech; Sonification: NASA/CXC/SAO/Kimberly Arcand, SYSTEM Sounds (Matt Russo, Andrew Santaguida)

Galactic Center Sonification

The joint ESA/Jaxa BepiColombo mission flew past Mercury for the first time on 1 October 2021, capturing data with the magnetometer onboard ESA’s Mercury Planetary Orbiter. A sonification of the magnetic field data is presented here.  
 
Two synthesizers can be heard, which are controlled by three characteristics of the magnetic field. The first synthesizer's pitch represents the slowly changing magnitude of the background magnetic field. First the solar wind is heard, then the increase and decrease of the planetary magnetic field, and then the solar wind again. The lower the pitch, the more intense the magnetic field. 
 
The pitch of the second synthesizer is controlled by the variations of the magnetic field magnitude. A more turbulent magnetic field is represented by a faster change in pitch. The magnetosheath crossing after closest approach is very prominent. 
 
Using the amplitude envelope as a control for the volume of the second synthesizer emphasises the different magnetospheric regions.
 
Full story 
https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/BepiColombo/BepiColombo_s_first_tastes_of_Mercury_science

Credit: ESA/BepiColombo/MPO-MAG/IGEP-IWF-IC-ISAS

Image credit: ESA/ATG medialab

Sound of the solar wind at Mercury

Kepler: Star KIC12268220C Light Curve Waves to Sound

from the "Les Alentours" CS (NNF416)
Not Not Fun / 2024

DIGITAL:
https://jean-emmanuel.bandcamp.com/album/les-alentours

Jean-Emmanuel Rosnet "Syzygie"

Listen to the ESA/JAXA BepiColombo spacecraft as it flew past Mercury on 8 January 2025. This sixth and final flyby used the little planet's gravity to steer the spacecraft on course for entering orbit around Mercury in 2026. 

What you can hear in the sonification soundtrack of this video are real spacecraft vibrations measured by the Italian Spring Accelerometer (ISA) instrument. The accelerometer data have been shifted in frequency to make them audible to human ears – one hour of measurements have been sped up to around one minute of sound.  

Sonification by Carmelo Magnafico (IAPS/INAF).

Watch the video: https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Videos/2025/01/The_sounds_of_BepiColombo_s_sixth_flight_past_Mercury

The sounds of BepiColombo’s sixth flight past Mercury

Juno will improve our understanding of the solar system's beginnings by revealing the origin and evolution of Jupiter.

Juno: Entering Jupiter's Magnetosphere

Plasmaspheric hiss waves as heard by NASA’s Polar mission as it passed around Earth.

Credits: NASA/University of Iowa

Plasmaspheric Hiss

Before settling into orbit around Saturn, Cassini faced a white-knuckle ride through the plane of the planet’s rings. When converted into an audio file, the interstellar cacophony is reminiscent of a hellstorm on Earth.

Cassini Shields Up

One year and three trips around the Sun later, NASA's Parker Solar Probe heard some weird, sci-fi sounds from plasma within the solar wind -- and those sounds may answer unanswered questions about how the wind forms.

Parker Solar Probe - Whistler Mode Waves 1

Parker Solar Probe - Langmuir Waves

Parker Solar Probe - Dispersive Chirping Waves 1

Hello, we’re NASA. You may have seen our astronauts, rocket launches, or Mars rovers — but have you heard our sounds? From interviews with astronauts and engineers to stories that take you on a tour of the galaxy, NASA’s audio offerings let you experience the thrill of space exploration without ever leaving Earth.