Webb Telescope Data, Translated to Sound — Southern Ring Nebula: Near-Infrared

Experience the first full-color images and data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope in a brand new way. NASA’s Webb Telescope uncovered two views of the Southern Ring Nebula, one in near-infrared light and one in mid-infrared light. The colors in the images were mapped to pitches of sound — frequencies of light converted directly to frequencies of sound — in a data sonification. This video only includes sounds from the near-infrared view. Near-infrared light is represented here by a higher range of frequencies than mid-infrared light. There are two stars in the center of this planetary nebula. In the near-infrared, only one star is heard clearly, with a louder clang.  Sonifications support blind and low-vision listeners first, but are designed to be captivating to anyone who tunes in. This sonification, which scans the images from left to right, was adapted to a video to allow sighted viewers to watch as a vertical line moves across the frame. The sonification does not represent sound