#NASA
30 Doradus, or the Tarantula Nebula, is one of the largest and brightest regions of star formation close to the Milky Way. NASA’s Chandra X-ray team worked to turn the digital data from a stunning image into a vibrant sonification. The higher in the frame the element is, the higher the pitch of the sound. In the Chandra sonification, the mottled cloud of bright blue X-ray light is mapped to notes on an airy synthesizer. In the James Webb Space Telescope infrared sonification, the red nebula is mapped to soft low musical pitches, and the wispy white cloud is mapped to harsh, high frequency, wind-like sounds. Stars are played on a piano-like synthesizer, with percussion triangles indicating diffraction spikes. A rain-stick represents stars belonging to the central cluster. All of these instruments are combined in the composite sonification.
