A fictional asteroid impact

Ripples in the fabric of reality, distant galaxies acting as lenses, and filaments of galaxies stretching across the cosmos – gravity is more than just the force that keeps us from floating off the surface of Earth. In this final episode of Expedition Sound, we venture out into deep space and explore some of the extraordinary phenomena caused by gravity that we can observe with ESA’s space missions. Guided by a sonification of a collage of so-called Einstein Rings, we explore how gravity shapes the large-scale structure of the Universe and how ESA’s Euclid space telescope reveals objects that would otherwise remain hidden from view. Along the way, we learn from Valeria Pettorino, Project Scientist of Euclid, about gravitational lensing, Einstein rings and the cosmic web of galaxies that stretches across the Universe. In a conversation with Lorenzo Speri, Research Fellow working on ESA's upcoming LISA mission, we learn from each other through a sonification exchange. Lorenzo teaches us about gravitational waves through sound, and together we discuss how sonification can help us understand phenomena that are difficult to observe directly, while opening new doors to experiencing and communicating science.

Wobbling stars and distant worlds – in this episode of Expedition Sound, we leave the planets of our Solar System behind and venture out into our home galaxy to explore the stars and exoplanets in the Milky Way galaxy. Through the sonification of so-called starquakes observed by the European Space Agency’s Gaia space telescope, we explore what we can learn from listening to the heartbeat of stars and how astronomers uncover clues about their age, structure and life story. We hear from Sarah Kane, a PhD student at the University of Cambridge, who studies stars using data from ESA's Gaia mission. Sarah shares how starquakes can help astronomers learn about the ages of stars and reflects on her experiences doing astronomical research as a scientist with a visual impairment. We also meet Maximilian Günther, Project Scientist for ESA's upcoming Plato mission, to explore what we can learn from studying exoplanets and how missions such as Gaia and Plato are helping us piece together the story of worlds so far from our own.

We get as close as possible to travelling aboard a spacecraft, experiencing what it would be like to fly towards planet Mercury. Through a sonification of data collected during ESA/JAXA BepiColombo’s sixth flyby, we can almost feel the spacecraft shaking and the rocky planet’s gravity tugging on it. In this episode of Expedition Sound, we explore the planets of our Solar System and make a stop at planet Mercury. Blasted by the Sun's intense heat and shaped by a magnetic field unlike any other rocky planet’s, this small world is a place that still holds many mysteries. We hear from BepiColombo Project Scientist Geraint Jones about which of Mercury's mysteries the mission will help scientists unravel, and about what hearing the spacecraft approach the planet is like for someone so involved in the mission. In this episode, we also talk with Ben Ruggles, who was an undergraduate student at the University of Portsmouth, UK, at the time of recording. Ben explains how he uses sonification in his astronomy research as a scientist with a visual impairment, and discusses the challenges of collaborating with others while doing science through sound.

Guided by a sonification created with data from the ESA-led Solar Orbiter mission, we explore some of the mysteries of our Sun, how Solar Orbiter is studying them, and how sound can make astronomy more accessible. In this episode of Expedition Sound, we set off on our first journey of this podcast series and travel to the Sun – our familiar, friendly neighbourhood star. Along the way, we meet one of Solar Orbiter’s project scientists Miho Janvier, who helps us uncover the science behind solar flares, the solar cycle, and the mysteries that scientists are still trying to solve about the Sun. We also hear from Nic Bonne, a blind astronomer and science communicator at the University of Portsmouth, about how sonification can open new doors to astronomy and create richer ways for everyone to experience the Universe.

We talk to Julia Schwartz, expert in flight dynamics, and Klaus Merz, space debris, about Solar Orbiter's upcoming risky Earth flyby. On 27 Nov, it will pass almost as close as the International Space Station in one of the closest flybys on record, which will see the spacecraft pass through two regions of hazardous debris. Could Solar Orbiter swerve from collision, if needed? Has the recent 'fragmentation event' increased the risk?