5 HN users recommended this explainer3 months2018–2022score 3.5
Years with an HN recommendation, 2007–2026
Recommended in launch threads as an immersive way to hear what a Falcon Heavy launch actually sounds like.
Smarter Every Day shares a binaural audio recording of the SpaceX Falcon Heavy launch made by Trevor Mahlmann, with explanations of the sounds including the sonic booms of the landing boosters. It is meant to be heard with headphones.
“the sonic booms of the boosters coming into land are amazing, listen with headphones!” (HN, 2019)
Thanks for that, great video that led me to this, [this video] , sound recording organised by Dustin from SmarterEveryDay of the latest SpaceX launch, the sonic booms of the boosters coming into land are amazing, listen with headphones!
Sonic booms of landing boosters in immersive audio
Related, someone submitted a binaural recording of the SpaceX Falcon Heavy launch to SmarterEveryDay: [this video] Conveys your sentiment regarding how it really sounds to be there. It unfortunately cannot convey the actual feeling of being there, and the impact of the launch on the body.
Binaural recording conveying how a Falcon Heavy launch sounds
For those not lucky enough to explore this in person, Destin Sandlin from Smarter Every Day made a video [1] (from the test launch last year) that gives you a somewhat acoustical representation and a lot of good explanations. I haven't seen a Falcon Heavy launch, but I've been lucky enough to see a 'normal' Falcon9 launch. There's 2 things that I know I didn't expect: The sound is just beyond anything. And I think the video above brings that across at least to some extend. The other part that surprised me when seeing a launch with my own eyes: The exhaust is bright . It gets lost quite a bit through cameras, so I was surprised how bright those flames are - even 30-45 seconds in, when the rocket is dozens of miles away. [1] [this video]
Acoustical representation of launch with good explanations
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