Sound of the solar wind at Mercury

BepiColombo flew past Mercury for the first time on 1 October 2021, capturing data with the magnetometer onboard ESA’s Mercury Planetary Orbiter. A sonification of the magnetic field data is presented here. 

Two synthesizers can be heard which are controlled by three characteristics of the magnetic field. The first synthesizer's pitch represents the slowly changing magnitude of the background magnetic field. First the solar wind is heard, then the increase and decrease of the planetary magnetic field, and then the solar wind again. The lower the pitch the more intense the magnetic field. 

The pitch of the second synthesizer is controlled by the variations of the magnetic field magnitude. A more turbulent magnetic field is represented by a faster change in pitch. The magnetosheath crossing after closest approach is very prominent. 

Using the amplitude envelope as a control for the volume of the second synthesizer emphasises the different magnetospheric regions.

The dotted line in the plot marks closest approach.

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