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.
Hosted by Zsófi Szalavári
Check out the image that the sonification illustrates here: https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2025/03/Strong_gravitational_lenses_captured_by_Euclid For the sonification, only 35 of the 112 images were used.
Learn more about ESA’s Euclid mission: esa.int/Euclid
Learn more about ESA’s LISA mission: esa.int/LISA
Citizen Science project ‘Space Warps’: https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Euclid/Euclid_Space_Warps_help_spot_galaxies_bending_spacetime
Many thanks to Klaus Nielsen (DTU Space / Maple Pools) and Parsa Emamdadi for making the sonification in this episode. If you would like to hear more sonifications and music by Klaus, please visit: https://linktr.ee/maplepools
Original theme music produced by Marci Szalavári (https://soundcloud.com/septrone-hd).
Expedition Sound is a podcast series by the European Space Agency (ESA) in which you’re invited to explore the Universe through your ears. Guided by sonifications – the translation of data into sound – we travel from our Sun out into the depths of space to uncover what the space telescopes of ESA’s science missions teach us about the Universe.
