Showcase

• Journey to the Centre of a Quasar (1.3Mb). In this sound clip, we journey to the violent heart of a galaxy. We start off flying through the outskirts of a galaxy (hissing noise) passing various stars (different loud hisses) before penetrating the vast nebula surrounding the black hole that lurks in the middle. We penetrate different parts of this nebula, moving steadily closer and closer to the black hole, before hearing the roar of the gas swirling close to the event horizon.
• Sounds of Nebulae (864kb). Medley of sounds from different nebulae.
• The Celestial Orchestra Explained (1.6Mb). I show how the different instruments in the celetial orchestra (the different chemical elements) make up the sound of a nebula: the Eskimo nebula NGC2392.
• Planetary Nebulae: Movie and Sounds (1Mb). A Quicktime movie combining images of five gorgeous planetary nebulae (taken with the Hubble Space Telescope) with the sounds detected from them. Planetary nebulae surround dying stars.
• Comet Song (664kb) Listen as a comet approaches the Sun and bursts into song, before fading back into the outer darkness. The song is due to molecules, blowing off the comet's surface due to the heat of the sun.
• The Life of our Sun (1Mb) The whole lifetime of a star like our own sun, compressed down from ten billion years down to two minutes. This sound-clip starts with the faint hum of diffuse gas in space. The ringing sound of a stellar nursery is followed by the hiss of the young Sun. FOr a long time it sits there, very slowly growing more powerful. Until suddenly fuel starts to run out: you hear it change into the dull roar of a red giant before dying away in the ringing tones of a planetary nebula, leaving behind the faint and fading hiss of a white dwarf star.