According to the NASA Exoplanet Archive, the total number of known exoplanets crossed 5,000 on March 21, 2022, marking the first time this has happened. This animation and sonification depict humanity’s progress in discovering planets beyond our solar system throughout history. NASA data has been converted into sounds, allowing users to hear the progress of scientific discovery, with additional information provided by the individual notes.
As each exoplanet is discovered, a circle appears in the sky near the location of the planet’s discovery. According to the size of the circle, this planet’s orbit is relatively large, and the color of the circle indicates which planet detection method was used to discover it (red, green, or blue). The soundtrack is composed by playing a note for each new universe discovered, and the pitch of the note indicates that the planet’s relative orbital period has been determined. Lower notes are heard for planets that take a longer time to orbit their stars, whereas higher notes are heard for planets that orbit their stars more swiftly.
You can also check our beautiful playlist, “The Voices of the Nine Planets of The Solar System.”
