Space isn't quiet it's loud

Turns out space has sound, and it's louder than you ever imagined

By Smartasaurus· 1 min read Cosmic

Imagine standing right next to a massive star as it violently explodes

Scale check

Gut call — how extreme does this actually get?

Reality tends to overshoot. Pick your ceiling.

The short version

Turns out space has sound, and it's louder than you ever imagined
However, this doesn't mean space is empty.
If two astronauts touched their glass helmets together, they could actually hear each other speak.

Outer space is silent because sound is a mechanical wave that requires a medium to travel through. On Earth, sound moves by bumping air molecules into one another like a line of falling dominoes. In the vacuum of space, those dominoes don't exist.

Because the distance between atoms in the void is so massive, a vibration has nothing to push against. If a star exploded right next to you, you wouldn't hear a roar; you would only see a blinding flash of light. Light, unlike sound, is an electromagnetic wave and doesn't need atoms to hitch a ride on.

However, this doesn't mean space is empty. It is filled with gas and dust, but the density is too low for our ears to detect. In some massive gas clouds, sound waves can actually exist, but their frequency is so low—one vibration every few million years—that no human could ever perceive them.

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