Galactic Center

Explore the center of our very own Milky Way galaxy! The sonification starts from the left side of the image and progresses to the right. It translates the position and brightness of cosmic sources into sound, with higher pitches representing objects towards the top of the image and volume indicating the light intensity. Stars and compact sources produce distinct notes, while extended clouds of gas and dust generate a dynamic drone.

The crescendo occurs as we approach the bright region on the lower right of the image, where the 4-million-solar-mass supermassive black hole, Sagittarius A*, is located. This area is marked by the brightest clouds of gas and dust.

Listeners can experience the data from this roughly 400 light-year-wide region in various ways. Individual "solos" feature data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, the Hubble Space Telescope, and the Spitzer Space Telescope, each highlighting different phenomena. The ensemble version combines these data sources, with each telescope contributing a unique instrument sound. Hubble outlines energetic regions of star formation, Spitzer reveals intricate glowing dust clouds, and Chandra shows gas heated to millions of degrees from stellar explosions and outflows from Sagittarius A*.

Sonification credits: SYSTEM Sounds (M. Russo, A. Santaguida)