What can we learn by keeping our ear to the cosmos?

Anyone who remembers the iconic Ridley Scott film “Alien” (who could forget?) may recall the tagline “in space, no one can hear you scream.” And while sci-fi films are frequent fodder for scientific debate, this assertion is widely acknowledged as true. Because there is no air in space, there is nothing to conduct the sound waves, and therefore no vibrations that are perceptible to the human ear. But that’s not to say it’s impossible to hear the sounds of space. With a little creativity and a lot of scientific ingenuity, astrophysicists have developed fascinating ways for us to listen to the cosmos. 

In most cases, the listening process only requires a little bit of translation. Mechanical sound waves might not be able to travel through space, but electromagnetic waves can. Scientists use instruments to collect radio waves, microwaves, infrared rays, optical rays, ultraviolet rays, X-rays, and gamma-rays, then convert them into audible sound waves through a process known as sonification. 

NASA researchers were considering the possibilities of sound in space as early as 1977, when the Voyager probes were launched. In the event that the interstellar probes encounter intelligent extraterrestrial life, NASA placed a “Golden Record” aboard the spacecraft that bears the auditory marks of life on earth: ocean waves, bird song, greetings in 55 languages, and even a playlist of multicultural music through the ages. But scientists were also thinking about what sounds the Voyagers could receive when they installed a Plasma Wave Subsystem onboard each probe. 

In 2012, Voyager 1 crossed the boundary of the heliosphere. Not long after, it sent back an amazing piece of data: the vibrations of dense plasma, or ionized gas, rumbling in interstellar space. These eerie whistles are helping scientists learn about the density in this strange space beyond our solar system. 

Plasma is frequently used as a medium for scientists to detect space sounds. Just as sound waves can move grains of sand on a plate, similar waves can cause the plasma in the Sun to rise and fall. This is how scientists learned that the Sun itself rings like a bell. Telescopes like the HMI and MDI observed movements in solar plasma, and the team at Stanford’s Solar Center created the Sonification of Solar Harmonics or SoSH Project to convert these observed solar vibrations into audible sounds.

Plasma wave instruments were also placed on NASA’s planetary explorers, like the Cassini probe to Saturn and the Juno probe to Jupiter. Cassini’s Radio and Plasma Wave Science Instrument has picked up a number of fascinating signals, including radio emissions from Saturn and its moons and an impressive lightning storm. Cassini also carried a microphone aboard the Huygens probe which recorded sound as it descended to the Saturnian moon of Titan. 

The Juno probe captured data as it descended into Jupiter’s magnetosphere, the largest structure in our solar system. It picked up a series of electromagnetic waves trapped in a cavity within Jupiter’s magnetic field. A couple of months later, the instrument received radio signals from the planet’s notoriously intense auroras. 

Not all sounds captured in space are a result of electromagnetic waves. Direct impacts can cause mechanical vibrations that are audible to the human ear. For instance, when Stardust-NExT encountered the comet Tempel 1 in 2011, its Dust Flux Monitor recorded the vibrations of dust particles pelting the craft. 

In 2019, the InSight lander placed a highly sensitive seismometer on Mars which has collected the sounds of quakes and Martian winds. Inspired by the seismoter’s success, NASA opted to send a set of microphones onboard the Perseverance rover, which landed on the red planet in February of 2021. The Entry Descent and Landing mic recorded Percy’s successful landing, while the SuperCam mic sends back the mechanical sounds from the rover and the rocks and minerals it studies. 

Other space sounds are sonifications from data about light. This has allowed NASA to glean sounds with some of its most impressive telescopes, including the Chandra X-Ray Observatory, the Hubble Space Telescope, and the Spitzer Space Telescope. These telescopes create images by capturing x-ray, infrared, and optical light. Sonification converts that data into audio in which the pitch and volume reflect the concentration and intensity of the light. As a result, we’re able to hear celestial objects like supernovas, nebulas, and even black holes. (In case you’re wondering, black holes sing in the key of B-flat).

But why go through all this trouble to recreate the sounds of space? The answers are simultaneously complex and very simple. In the case of plasma wave instruments, scientists can learn a great deal about the interactions and dynamics between objects in our solar system. The “sounds” that come from these studies are just a fun after-effect. And science should be fun. Musical composers, video game designers, and other multi-media artists have latched onto these space sounds for all sorts of creative endeavors. Who’s to say complex scientific data shouldn’t be accessible to the masses? 

Accessibility is another important piece of the puzzle. Tools like sonification broaden the field of astrophysics so it can be studied and enjoyed by people who are blind or low vision. But it also presents data in a multi-sensory form that makes learning more accessible for everyone. 

Listening with Eclipse Soundscapes

For more fun and accessible space science, download the Eclipse Soundscapes Mobile Application, which allows you to hear (and feel) a total solar eclipse. You can also sign up to join our upcoming Eclipse Soundscapes: Citizen Science Project, where we’ll be studying how eclipses impact the soundscapes here on planet Earth. It’s just another way to keep our ears open and learn about our universe! 

The first thing to understand about auditory learning is that it is wrapped in a cloak of myth.

In the early ‘90s, the idea of different “learning styles” was popularized by the VARK questionnaire. The movement suggested that all humans fall into one of five categories: visual learners, auditory learners, reading/writing learners, or kinesthetic learners. The trend took off. Not only did pedagogues add more categories to the list, but learners began identifying with certain styles, and educators began teaching to specific styles. It wasn’t until the last decade or so that the concept of “learning styles” was debunked.

Although students may believe that they learn best in a particular style, there is no evidence that they learn or retain information any better by receiving the material in their chosen style. So why has the myth of learning styles persisted?

While the research does not support different “learning styles,” it’s obvious that learners do have different preferences and abilities. And if learners have a disability with which they physically or cognitively cannot learn through a particular method, it’s important to consider alternate modalities.

So, even if there’s no such thing as “auditory learners,” auditory learning remains an important tool in any educator’s toolbox.

Hearing is a powerful sense that can enrich our learning in myriad ways. Because ARISA Lab’s group of Eclipse Soundscapes projects will use auditory techniques to help participants learn about eclipses, in this blog we’ll explore how we hear, the fascinating link between hearing and memory, and the benefits of incorporating sound into education.

What happens when we hear a sound?

Receiving Sound

When sound waves enter our ears, they travel through the ear canal to vibrate our eardrums. The bones in our middle ear amplify these vibrations, causing fluid inside our cochlea to ripple. This in turn stimulates tiny hair cells in our inner ears. These hairs convert the sound waves into an electrical signal, and send those signals to the auditory nerve. The auditory nerve passes through the auditory cortex of our brain, located in the temporal lobe. Our brain then interprets those signals.

This video from the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders gives a great overview.

Perceiving Sound

Most brains are adept at interpreting sounds, especially when it comes to human speech. They’re also great at filtering out background noise — sounds we do not need to process in the moment.

How the brain perceives and interprets heard sounds takes place at a number of levels.

• Some perception is reflexive (like a loud sound that causes us to jump)
• Some perception happens in the auditory cortex
• Some perception happens in other areas of the brain
  • One part of the brain may recognize a memorized sound, like your mother’s laugh.
  • Another part of the brain may prepare a voluntary response to a question.
  • Yet another part of your brain might have an emotional reaction to the content of the sound.

This video from S. Blatrix and R. Puhol, shows the journey of sound through the auditory pathway.

All of this depends on our level of alertness. If we are asleep, our ears still work. Sound may cause reflexive movement, but the other parts of the brain involved in perceiving sound remain inactive.

How do we learn and remember through sound?

Hearing and Remembering

To understand learning through sound, it’s important to consider the unique link between hearing and memory. As Krause and White-Schwoch suggest in Unraveling the Biology of Auditory Learning: A Cognitive-Sensorimotor-Reward Framework, “the precision of automatic sound processing in the brain is linked to cognitive skills such as attention and working memory.”

Humans have a good ability to hold a large amount of auditory information for about 3-4 seconds. For this time we can “replay” the sound in our mind. This is known as “echoic memory.” Repetition, or repeated exposure to a set of sounds, can help us encode information in our long term memory, where it can be retrieved later. Attention is also at play here: while our working memory processes sounds, our ears are still paying attention to all the new sounds coming in.

Some research suggests that listening is exceptionally good exercise for the brain. Older adults experience rapid cognitive decline when they are not able to hear well. Per contra, studies show that music training may improve memory and linguistic expression. Music reaches parts of our brain that are responsible for attention, emotion, and procedural memory. Patients with Alzheimers can often remember music from their past, and music therapy may activate their brains and improve communication. Such evidence suggests a strong music-memory connection. This connection is the reason why you still remember the words to your high school favorite song (or that terrible chewing gum jingle) years after you last heard it. If remembering is one key to successful learning, is it possible that auditory modalities like music help us learn better?

A Case for Multi-Sensory Learning

The science on the specific benefits of auditory learning has not yet broken free of the confines of “learning styles.” There’s no reason to believe that auditory learning, on its own, is more or less effective than any other sensory form. Instead of focusing solely on auditory learning, educators should consider a multi-sensory approach.

The human brain is uniquely evolved to thrive in a multi-sensory environment. We are designed to process our world through sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste. One popular paper on the “Benefits of Multi-Sensory Learning” stated that “multi-sensory training protocols can better approximate natural settings and are more effective for learning.” The hope is that by engaging different areas of the brain, multi-sensory learning could help improve neural connectivity.

As ARISA Lab Education Director MaryKay Severino put it, the shift from “learning styles” to multimodal learning won’t necessarily change how educators plan activities. Instead of using multi-sensory activities to benefit individual styles, the aim is to use multi-sensory activities to benefit every learner. The change, Severino said, “is how we explain learning to learners themselves. If a learner understands that learning with as many senses as possible will support their understanding, there could be more engagement.”

If learners are engaged and educators are encouraging understanding, the brain will take care of the rest.

Have you ever dreamed of becoming a scientist, but found yourself on another life path? Are there young people in your life who are curious about STEAM? Do you want to make a contribution towards bettering the world, but you’re not quite sure where to begin? If so, citizen science might be the best tool for you to expand your knowledge base while engaging in relevant modern research.

Citizen science is a practice in which members of the public voluntarily participate in the scientific process to address real world questions and concerns.

There are many definitions of citizen science, and even more types of projects, but all of them share commonalities. According the citizen science website SciStarter, four common features of citizen science are:

• anyone is eligible to participate
• participants use the same protocol so data can be combined and be high quality
• data can help real scientists come to real conclusions
• a wide community of scientists and volunteers work together and share data to which the public, as well as scientists, have access

There are a few more similarities between citizen science projects. Often, these projects utilize crowdsourcing, and embrace the potential for public education and citizen agency.

Crowdsourcing

Citizen science relies on non-professional scientists (citizens) to contribute to the project or research. This is sometimes known as “crowdsourcing.” SciStarter points out that public involvement typically features data collection, analysis, or reporting. Participants may record notes about local wildlife, use test kits to monitor water quality, or measure light pollution with their smartphone. Lead scientists and subject matter experts often design the project and provide insight into findings, but the role of the citizen scientist is invaluable. Widespread volunteerism allows scientists to collect a broad scope of data that they otherwise would not have the funding or people-power to compile.

Public Education

Critics of citizen science have questioned whether this use of unpaid citizen labor is exploitative, but the ultimate goal of most citizen science projects is to involve the public in research that is both fun and educational. Citizen science provides participants with a chance to learn about the scientific process, and implement it, in both formal and informal education environments. A 2018 study from the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine on “Learning Through Citizen Science” found that: “With careful planning, intentional design, and learning supports, citizen science can:

• amplify participants’ identities as individuals who contribute to science and support their self-efficacy in science
• provide an opportunity for participants to learn about data, data analysis, and interpretation of data, and
• provide a venue for participants to learn about the nature of science and scientific reasoning.”

These learning opportunities are not only valuable for participants. A focus on public education can help ensure that citizen science projects come away with unbiased and accurate data. The “Learning Through Citizen Science” study also found that “helping participants develop and practice the skills associated with data collection improved the quality of data collected, which is good both for science and the communities who base subsequent action on that data.”

Citizen Agency

This brings us to another facet of citizen science: that citizen science projects can and should instill a sense of agency in citizen participants. Projects may be local or global in nature, but most will focus on topics that citizens care about, whether it’s a worldwide issue like climate change or a regional concern like air quality in their neighborhood. Participating in the science surrounding these matters is a way for citizens to take action. This is particularly effective if the data can influence policy making that directly affects the citizen and their environment.
No large-scale study has been conducted to prove the importance of citizen agency, but many studies have agreed that this is one potential benefit. A 2020 study of a citizen science program on malaria control suggested: “A [citizen science project] has potential not only as a means of collecting a large amount of citizen science data, but also equally important, as a means of engaging citizens in decision-making and solving environmental and public health problems.”

Where and How to Find Citizen Science Projects

If you’re interested in participating in a citizen science project, there are plenty of resources to help you get started. You can use a search tool like SciStarter or CitizenScience.gov to find a project happening online or near you. Both of these search tools allow you to filter projects to find one that suits your interests.

The Eclipse Soundscapes Citizen Science Project

The Eclipse Soundscapes Citizen Science Project will call on citizen scientists to collect audio recordings of soundscapes before, during, and after total solar eclipses. These recordings may help us better understand how astronomical events affect life here on Earth. Citizen scientists will be called to participate in 2023. To stay up to date with project details, join our mailing list.

Informal learning has experienced somewhat of a renaissance in the United States since the emergence of the COVID-19 virus. Libraries, aquariums, museums, and other institutions have pivoted to virtual programming as a resource for children and adults to augment their education. Still, for most of the general public, informal learning is little more than a buzzword. So what is informal learning exactly? One key is location. Informal learning is any learning that takes place outside of traditional environments like classrooms. 

We are constantly engaged with informal learning 

Have you ever heard the phrase “you learn something new every day?” That’s true for most of us, even if we don’t set out to study a new topic or attend a lecture series. Maybe you Googled how to change the oil in your car, or your friend gave you some tips to improve your basketball game — that’s informal learning! 

Informal learning can be the same, or similar, to non-formal learning

There is some debate about the differences between non-formal learning and informal learning. In some circles, the division is quite strict. These groups hold that non-formal learning takes place outside of schools, has some organizational framework, and is often instructor-led. Informal learning, on the other hand, is involuntary — participants do not make a conscious decision to learn and there is no organizational structure offered to them. 

Not everyone is as stringent about this distinction. Often, the terms are used interchangeably. 

Educational researcher Stephen Richard Billett put it this way: “workplaces and educational institutions merely represent different instances of social practices in which learning occurs through participation.” Even though our social and cultural structures may be invisible to us, they do follow formalized procedures.

It’s important not to get too hung up on the distinctions. The category of learning is far less important than ensuring that the learning is effective. 

Informal learning in STEM is sometimes known as informal science education

In the science community, informal learning is often referred to as “informal science education.” According to The Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education (CAISE), “When we talk about the field of informal science, or STEM, education, we are referring to experiences and settings that are being designed, implemented and assessed by a community of dedicated, trained practitioners.” 

To be clear, informal science education may or may not be led by an instructor or subject matter expert (SME). It’s not uncommon for a professional to help guide or curate the content. For instance, an instructor may facilitate an after-school program, or a SME may host a citizen science event. However, in an informal learning scenario like a self-guided museum visit, direct SME interaction is not an integral part of the experience. Likewise, a SME may be interviewed for a public television documentary, but they do not necessarily guide or assess any learning that may take place when someone watches the program. 

The setting and degree of instructor involvement may vary, but studies suggest that informal science education could play a crucial role in the future of science. 

Informal learning has many benefits 

So why is informal learning so important? It provides more venues and modalities for education, which is always a good thing if you ask us! For children, it’s an opportunity to reinforce or add to school learning. For adults, informal learning is a chance for continuing education. 

Evidence shows that informal science education helps learners to identify “as someone who knows about, uses, and sometimes contributes to science.” We call this positive science identity, and it’s important for long-term engagement with STEM. Positive science identity is enhanced when learners “encounter and make use of the ideas, images, communities, resources, and pathways that can lead to progressively greater involvement in the practices of science.” 

Because informal education is much broader in terms of content and desired outcomes, it is not as rigidly defined or implemented as formal education. This can allow for greater flexibility. Participants are able to guide their own learning and discover knowledge as they go. This is particularly important for adult learners, who prefer to have greater control and self-direction.

Younger learners may also enjoy this style of experiential learning, especially when it caters to their interests. While an extracurricular science club or nature outing won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, these events can bolster the skills and science identity of already enthusiastic learners. They may also provide learners who have negative associations with school with a more positive environment in which to learn. 

Many informal science programs are easy-access and available on-the-go through public resources like libraries and museums. Often, these informal learning opportunities are free, provided attendees have a reliable internet connection. 

Informal learning can and should be accessible

There is one pitfall to informal science education, and that is a lack of research on best practices for the inclusion of people with disabilities. According to a 2010 study by the Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education, the non-uniform standards of informal science “can pose [a] significant barrier to inclusion.” 

The study suggests that “the lack of systemic and accepted professional standards for approaching the inclusion of all individuals—especially those with disabilities—presents the greatest challenge for making inclusion a routine and commonplace practice in the field of informal science education.”

ARISA Lab is committed to shifting the paradigm towards more inclusion in informal science education. Through innovative and inclusive citizen science projects like Eclipse Soundscapes, we are developing best practices to ensure that all learners can contribute to science as equals. For more information on how to make informal learning accessible, follow ARISA Lab on social media.

In July, NASA bolstered its commitment to diversity in science by adding “inclusion” to its list of core values. (The pre-existing values are teamwork, safety, excellence, and integrity). In the announcement, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said: “Incorporating inclusion as a NASA core value is an important step to ensuring this principle remains a long-term focus for our agency and becomes ingrained in the NASA family DNA.”

NASA has spent the last decade reforming its image to be a model for equal opportunity, diversity, and inclusion, both in the federal government and in the nation as a whole. Some recent endeavors that align with these goals include translating key NASA documents into a variety of languages, and renaming cosmic objects (like nebulae) whose nicknames hold racist and ableist connotations. “Science is for everyone, and every facet of our work needs to reflect that value,” Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, told NASA’s news service.

The Science Mission Directorate is prepared to put its money where its mouth is when it comes to grant funding. One of NASA’s competitive, highly sought-after grants comes from the Science Mission Directorate’s Science Activation Program, also known as SciAct. SciAct grants connect NASA science experts with communities to “do science in ways that activate minds and promote deeper understanding of our world and beyond.” SciAct is especially interested in projects that broaden participation of under-represented and under-served learners in order to maximize engagement and advancement of STEAM knowledge.

…Which leads us to our big announcement!

Announcing the Eclipse Soundscapes Citizen Science Project

The Eclipse Soundscapes: Citizen Science Project (ES:CSP), an enterprise of ARISA LAB, is honored to be chosen as one of 27 recipients of a five year SciAct Grant, set to begin in 2021. ES:CSP will be supported by NASA under award No. 80NSSC21M0008.

Eclipse Soundscapes originally launched to make the “Great American Eclipse” of 2017 accessible to everyone, with a special focus on users who are blind or low vision. Its cornerstone project was a mobile application, available for iOS and Android devices. The app includes real-time illustrative audio descriptions of eclipses, as well as an interactive “rumble map” that allows users to conceptualize an eclipse through touch and sound. The 2017 project was funded by the NASA Space Science Education Consortium.

“The Eclipse Soundscapes Project began three years ago with the intention of making the 2017 total solar eclipse exciting and engaging for everyone, including people who are blind or low vision,” said Dr. Henry Winter, who co-founded ARISA Lab alongside MaryKay Severino. “We are excited to work with NASA and our partners to build the necessary tools to allow everyone to perform real and meaningful scientific research as equal participants.”

Eclipse Soundscapes’ new project will introduce accessible opportunities for citizen scientists to participate in eclipse research. With the help of citizen scientists, NASA subject matter experts (SMEs) will collect audio recordings from eclipses and analyze acoustic data to determine how disruptions in light and circadian rhythms may affect ecosystems. The data will include soundscapes recorded by the National Park Service and Brigham Young University during the 2017 total solar eclipse, as well as recordings to be taken during the 2023 annular eclipse and 2024 total solar eclipse.

These recordings will be central to ARISA’s informal learning initiative, which is focused on fostering self-efficacy in under-represented learners. Under the guidance of NASA SMEs, citizen scientists will participate in 20-week workshops surrounding each eclipse. They will undergo training, collect and analyze eclipse acoustic data, and earn virtual badges upon completing the program. All workshops, materials, and learning interfaces will be designed to the highest degree of accessibility, with a focus on physical, social, and cognitive inclusion.

Partnerships

The mission to make science accessible to everyone will be supported through a number of partnerships.

Bioacoustic Advisory Board

An advisory board of bio-acoustic scientists will help guide ARISA in the analysis and interpretation of the soundscape data. The board consists of Dr. Megan McKenna of Stanford University’s Goldbogen Lab, Dr. Bryan C. Pijanowski of Purdue University’s Center for Global Soundscapes, Dr. Laurel Symes of The Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Center for Conservation Bioacoustics, and Sound and Light Ecology Team Research Associate Dr. Jacob Job.

“This project provides a wonderful, accessible opportunity for people to engage across scales, from lunar movements down to the smallest sounds of earth,” Dr. Laurel Symes said.

Dr. Jacob Job addressed the importance of the project to conservation. “ES:CSP makes the natural world accessible to more people, which is essential to recruiting more advocates for the conservation of the natural world, and our future,” he said.

Accessibility Consultants and Evaluators

The National Federation of the Blind, The GBH National Center for Accessible Media, and BLV Consultant Lindsay Yazzolino will provide external evaluations and accessibility consulting to maximize the reach of the project.

“As a totally blind researcher and lifelong STEM enthusiast, I’m a huge fan of citizen science,” Lindsay Yazzolino said. “However, I’ve discovered that many existing citizen science projects rely on visual methods for data collection and analysis, and therefore exclude so many blind individuals who would otherwise love to participate. I’m thrilled to work with the rest of the Eclipse Soundscapes team to create opportunities for blind citizen scientists to engage in exciting, impactful, and completely accessible hands-on science projects while contributing valuable scientific knowledge in the process.”

Mark A. Riccobono, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said: “By participating in this project, we are helping to develop innovative nonvisual tools for blind people to explore a dramatically visual experience through sound and to create opportunities for blind citizen scientists to learn and contribute to the body of knowledge we gather about our universe.”

Inclusive Web Interfaces

Regine Gilbert and her students in the Integrated Digital Media Program at New York University Tandon School of Engineering will design, implement, and test ES:CSP web interfaces.

“It’s important that students get hands-on experience,” Regine Gilbert said. “My students will have the opportunity to use their design skills to create an accessible and inclusive
interface as part of the ES:CSP.”

Subject Matter Experts and Educational Materials

The NASA Space Science Education Consortium (NSSEC) will assist with networking and promotion of NASA SME-led events, and its STEAM Innovation Lab will produce tactile and accessible education and presentation materials.

“When we worked with the ARISA Lab team on the development of Eclipse Soundscapes for the 2017 eclipse, we knew the work couldn’t stop there” C. Alex Young, NSSEC Principal Investigator said. “By incorporating accessible citizen science and NASA SMEs into the project, this new phase of the program brings their work to the next level of inclusivity and impact.”

The Eclipse Soundscapes Citizen Science Project is excited to join NASA in their ongoing mission to make science and space accessible for all. Stay tuned for more exciting developments in 2021.

Disclaimer: Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.