Web Log: Pass the time listening to the solar system

What does the solar system sound like? This accurate simulation of the orbital frequencies of the planets (complete with a dashboard clocking up the years as they pass) by graphic designer Luke Twyman gives Earth and her celestial companions an eerie, minimalist soundtrack that is based on their orbits.

This web app is already five years old but was updated for a slicker interface and to celebrate Nasa's Dawn spacecraft reaching dwarf planet Ceres. The interactive elements allow for tweaking of speed, echo, bass and musical scale. If you play around with this enough it begins to sound like a lost track from 2001: a Space Odyssey. Alternatively YouTube "sounds of Saturn" to hear recordings captured by Nasa's Voyager – this would make for an ideal (and pretty geeky) white noise substitute if you have trouble sleeping.

http://whitevinyldesign.com/solarbeat/