Tribe Leader Europe @ Zimperium, Founder & Owner of Genoly.BIZ & Co-Founder of SOCRAI, Human Cybersecurity
Day 1451: Why is there no sound in space? You cannot hear any sounds in near-empty regions of space. Sound travels through the vibration of atoms and molecules in a medium (such as air or water). In space, where there is no air, so sound has no way to travel. Sound, like light or heat, is a wave. However, one major distinction is that, unlike light or heat (radiation), sound needs a medium to travel. Sounds require the presence of molecules or particles to travel from one region to another. It is the outward vibration of these vagrant particles in the periphery of the source that accounts for the production and spreading of sound waves. A particle sauntering right next to a plucked string of a guitar is plunged into motion. This particle jiggles and transfers its kinetic energy to its neighbor, which then transfers it to his neighbor and so on, until the wave reaches the receptors in our ear and is perceived as a note. Therefore, the reason why sounds do not travel in space is because there are no particles to disturb in the first place. That being said, what about the gas particles, remnants from supernova explosions and other dust particles? Can’t they propagate sound? Oddly, no. These particles, unlike the particles on Earth, aren’t close enough or, to put it more elegantly, they aren’t compressed enough to communicate. Remember that space is virtually a vacuum, so the particles from the explosion are dispersed immediately and consequently aren’t dense enough to carry sound. Technically, a cloud of dust could carry sound, but the amplitude would be tremendously minuscule and practically inaudible to human ears. To an astronaut outside a spaceship, the spaceship’s explosion would be a confusing visual of blinding heat and light, but it would be devoid of any sound, a silent film. For anyone accustomed to the physics of Earth, this might induce cognitive dissonance. However, because the air inside the spaceship is compressed, the explosion could be easily heard by an astronaut inside. This is also why astronauts cannot shout out to their partners and must use special equipment that converts sound to radio when sending a message and radio to sound on the receiving end. So, no, there’s no sound in space. #learnonethingaday
