Sienna Rhodes
The Big Bang is often imagined as a loud, explosive sound, but in reality, it was likely a long, low, inaudible hum. This is because, for the first 100,000 to 700,000 years after the Big Bang, the universe was denser than the air on Earth, allowing sound waves to travel through it. As the universe expanded and cooled, sound wavelengths stretched, causing the pitch to decrease. While the Big Bang may not have been loud, it was likely the first sound in the universe, and its echoes may still be ongoing.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Sound of the Big Bang | More like a robotic humming than an explosive sound |
| Audibility | Inaudible to the human ear |
| Sound frequency | Very low frequency, about one trillionth of a hertz |
| Sound duration | Continued for hundreds of thousands of years |
| Cause of the sound | Sudden burst of energy, forming the universe |
| Sound waves | Could travel through the universe due to its density |
| Sound variation | Variation in pressure of around 1%, or 11 dB |
| Sound recording | Recreated by John Cramer using data from satellites |
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What You'll Learn
The first sound in the universe
The Big Bang, which created the universe, was likely the first sound in the universe. However, it didn't sound like a typical "bang." Instead, it was more like a long, low-frequency hum that continued for hundreds of thousands of years as the universe expanded. This sound was inaudible to humans and fell outside our range of hearing, with a frequency of about one-trillionth of a hertz.
John Cramer, a researcher and physicist at the University of Washington, recreated the sound of the Big Bang using data from NASA satellites that measured the cosmic microwave background radiation, a remnant of the Big Bang. To make it audible to humans, Cramer increased the frequency by 100 septillion times.
The early universe was denser than the air on Earth, allowing sound waves to move through it. As the universe expanded and cooled, the sound wavelengths stretched, causing the pitch to decrease. This cycle of compression and expansion led to the formation of stars and galaxies.
While the Big Bang may not have been loud, it was long-lasting, and its impact on the subsequent formation of the universe was profound. The very dawn of sound marked the beginning of time and space, and while it may have been inaudible, it set in motion the creation of everything we know today.
Therefore, the first sound in the universe was likely the sound of the Big Bang itself, a deep and prolonged hum that laid the foundation for the cosmos we observe today.
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Recreating the sound
However, this didn't stop John Cramer, a physicist at the University of Washington, from trying. Cramer used data collected by a satellite called WMAP, which observed the cosmic microwave background—the electromagnetic radiation left over from the Big Bang. This data held information about baryonic acoustic oscillations (BAOs), or the sound of the Big Bang.
Cramer fed the data into a computer program, which converted it into sound. The sound was so low and bass that it was inaudible to humans, so Cramer boosted its frequency 100 septillion times to bring it into the range of human hearing.
The resulting sound has been described as "somewhere between a video game character dying, or like an old-school computer powering down." It was a long, low, robotic hum, lasting for hundreds of thousands of years until the universe grew so large that the sound faded away.
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Inaudible to humans
The Big Bang was the first sound in the universe. However, it was inaudible to humans. This is because, during the first 100,000 to 700,000 years after the Big Bang, the universe was denser than the air on Earth, allowing sound waves to travel through it. As the universe expanded, the sound wavelengths stretched, causing the pitch to decrease. This humming sound continued for hundreds of thousands of years until it faded away completely. The wavelength of the sound was about half a million lightyears, and the frequency was far below the threshold of human hearing, at about one trillionth of a hertz.
John Cramer, a researcher at the University of Washington, recreated the sound of the Big Bang using data from two different satellites. The sound was so low that Cramer had to increase its frequency 100 septillion times to make it audible to humans.
The first organisms capable of hearing were probably bony fishes, which evolved around 400 million years ago. These fish developed the ability to sense vibrations using an organ originally used for balance. Over time, this organ evolved into a proto-cochlea.
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Sound in a vacuum
So, if there was nothing before the Big Bang, and space and time themselves were created in the Big Bang, then there was no medium for sound to travel through. Therefore, the Big Bang itself was silent.
However, this does not mean that there was no sound at all. In the first 100,000 to 700,000 years after the Big Bang, the universe was denser than the air on Earth, and so sound waves could travel through it. This deep tone was the sound of the universe expanding and cooling.
John Cramer, a researcher at the University of Washington, has created two renditions of what the Big Bang might have sounded like, based on data from two different satellites. The sound was so low in frequency that Cramer had to increase it by 100 septillion times to bring it into the range of human hearing.
So, while the Big Bang itself was silent, the sound of the newly created universe was not.
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Sound and evolution
The Big Bang, a sudden burst of energy that birthed our universe, was likely not a loud, explosive sound. Instead, it is theorised to have been a low, long, and continuous humming sound, akin to a robotic or video game character's dying hum. This sound, inaudible to the human ear, persisted for hundreds of thousands of years as the universe expanded and cooled, gradually fading away.
The concept of sound as we understand it today, is a product of evolution. The first organisms capable of hearing were probably bony fishes that evolved around 400 million years ago. They developed the ability to sense vibrations through a labyrinth organ originally used for balance in the water. Over time, this organ became more complex, eventually leading to the development of a proto-cochlea.
As life continued to evolve, amphibians emerged from the ancient seas and crawled onto land approximately 400 million years ago. These early amphibians were equipped with intricate structures that could detect sound waves in both water and air, as well as estimate their strengths, pitches, and directions. This marked a significant step in the evolution of hearing and our modern understanding of sound.
Sound, as we experience it, is intricately linked to the evolution of life on Earth. While the Big Bang may have produced sound waves, they were inaudible to any lifeforms that could have existed at the time. It is through the evolution of hearing organs and the emergence of life capable of detecting and interpreting sound that our modern concept of sound has evolved.
Today, we can recreate and amplify the sound of the Big Bang, thanks to advancements in technology and the work of researchers like John Cramer, who used data from satellites studying the cosmic microwave background to give us a glimpse, or rather a listen, into the early moments of our universe.
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Frequently asked questions
The Big Bang was likely not silent. However, it probably wasn't a loud bang as the name suggests. Instead, it was more like a low, long, robotic hum that continued for hundreds of thousands of years.
The sound of the Big Bang had a frequency far below the threshold of human hearing. It would have been inaudible to any eared creatures, had they existed at the time.
John Cramer, a physicist at the University of Washington, recreated the sound of the Big Bang using data collected by a satellite sent to inspect the cosmic microwave background. He converted this data into sound and boosted the frequency to make it audible to humans.
