NASA Releases Creepy Radio Recordings From Space That Will Make Your Skin Crawl

10_30_Halloween NASA
Active regions on the sun resemble a jack-o'-lantern’s face in this 2014 image from NASA. NASA/SDO

Just in time for Halloween, NASA has released a set of creepy recordings of sounds from space. The set of audio files can be accessed via SoundCloud, and you can listen to them below.

A statement from the space agency read: "Soaring to the depths of our universe, gallant spacecraft roam the cosmos, snapping images of celestial wonders. Some spacecraft have instruments capable of capturing radio emissions. When scientists convert these to sound waves, the results are eerie to hear.

"In time for Halloween, we've put together a compilation of elusive 'sounds' of howling planets and whistling helium that is sure to make your skin crawl."

A few of the recordings are described below.

The audio files were taken from planets, a comet and plasma waves. The first, "Juno Crossing Jupiter's Bow Shock," is the sound of NASA's spacecraft moving across the gas giant's magnetic field. The whistling sound suddenly turns into a deeper boom as Juno passes from an environment dominated by solar wind into Jupiter's magnetosphere.

"Chorus Radio Waves Within Earth's Atmosphere" is the sound of plasma waves rolling through space. The waves are electric and magnetic fields moving through the ions and electrons that compose the plasma. The interaction causes the rhythmic sound heard on the recording.

"Saturn's Radio Emissions" were recorded with the Cassini spacecraft, which recently plunged into the planet's atmosphere, bringing its long mission to an end. Saturn is a source of intense radio emissions that are related to the planet's auroras near its poles. The sounds recorded are very similar to the radio emissions from Earth's auroras.

"Lightning on Jupiter" was recorded by the Voyager spacecraft. The whistling emission is the sound of lightning moving away from the planet and into the magnetized plasma above. As the waves move into the plasma, higher-frequency ones move faster, meaning these get picked up first. The difference between the high- and low-frequency waves produces the whistling sound.

"Stardust: Passing Comet Tempel 1" is a recording of a comet flyby in 2011. NASA's Stardust spacecraft was bombarded with dust particles from the comet, and this is what can be heard in the recording. Over 11 minutes, the spacecraft was hit by about 5,000 bits of rock, ice and dust.

Uncommon Knowledge

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

About the writer


Hannah Osborne is Nesweek's Science Editor, based in London, UK. Hannah joined Newsweek in 2017 from IBTimes UK. She is ... Read more

To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.

Newsweek cover
  • Newsweek magazine delivered to your door
  • Newsweek Voices: Diverse audio opinions
  • Enjoy ad-free browsing on Newsweek.com
  • Comment on articles
  • Newsweek app updates on-the-go
Newsweek cover
  • Newsweek Voices: Diverse audio opinions
  • Enjoy ad-free browsing on Newsweek.com
  • Comment on articles
  • Newsweek app updates on-the-go