Many ancient legends spoke about the "voice" of the northern lights, but until a certain point, scientists believed that this was nothing more than fiction. Nevertheless, it turned out that there is an opportunity not only to hear this "voice", but even to record it.
The aurora borealis is called a special optical effect, which is a bright glow that occurs in the upper atmosphere as a result of their "bombardment" by charged particles of the solar wind. The aurora occurs not only on Earth, but also on some other planets with an atmosphere. For a long time, scientists have studied only the visual side of this physical phenomenon, but experts from Finland managed to find out that it is accompanied not only by an interesting optical effect, but also by a characteristic sound.
The "voice" of the northern lights is born in the air at a height of several tens of meters, and therefore it is very difficult to hear it from the ground, especially if the "voice" is interrupted by other noise. However, it was found that the human ear is able to perceive special sounds accompanying the aurora, which means that scientists have not heard them before only because of the great distance to the place of their origin. With the help of special equipment, scientists were able to record the sounds that are emitted by charged particles of the solar wind when interacting with gas molecules in the atmosphere.
The "voice" of the northern lights resembles a crackle, occasionally interrupted by dull beats. Comparing this sound with that which was described in ancient legends, scientists have established that many years ago people could hear this "voice". Now, to listen to it, you can go to places where the aurora occurs: for example, the Svalbard archipelago, the Ross Trench in Antarctica, or those places in northern Canada and Scotland where this physical phenomenon occurs. However, there is a simpler option: scientists have already shared the recordings of the "voice" of the northern lights with the general public, so you can find them on thematic sites and listen to them without leaving your own home.
