Submitted by full_hammer t3_10eku2h in askscience
Prak_Argabuthon t1_j4vh8to wrote
Do you want to have your mind blown? Because: actually THERE IS sound in space - really, really, REALLY quiet. Because - deep space is not really a perfect vacuum - there is about 1 atom of hydrogen per cubic centimetre. So, explosions such as a supernova DO create a sound wave - they are very quiet and very slow moving, but they definitely exist.
Redwoo t1_j4vjhjk wrote
Exactly! Sound does travel through the vacuum of space, just not at a high enough frequency for human hearing to perceive. The frequency is very low; so low that it might be hard to describe it as sound at all. And sound travels very slowly in space, slower than a typical walking pace.
Coomb t1_j4vz73x wrote
Sound, as it is conventionally understood, requires a medium to propagate which can reasonably be approximated as a continuum. That isn't true in the vast majority of space. Events like supernovas create shocks, not sound.
Prak_Argabuthon t1_j4wwvc3 wrote
Oh well if you want to get really technical, geez. Haha just kidding yes you're right of course. Thanks for clarifying.
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