Space chirping has its order. Czech scientists have revealed when and where it sounds.
24. 08. 2026
The universe around us speaks a language we are starting to understand. It is not quiet and empty, as it seems. Why is this vital news for our television and telecommunication satellites? Electromagnetic waves in the same frequency range as the sounds we hear fundamentally affect our planet's outer radiation belt. This is precisely where satellites for TV broadcasting and telecommunications operate. A new study by Czech scientists from the Czech Academy of Sciences and Charles University published in the journal Nature Communications revealed that the behavior of these waves has a surprisingly strict order in time and space.
The space environment surrounding our planet is filled with a tenuous gaseous plasma consisting mainly of positively charged protons and negatively charged electrons. Their movements are strongly influenced by Earth's magnetic field. This field can trap highly energetic particles inside the Van Allen radiation belts. The outer radiation belt encompasses the geostationary orbit, where satellites orbit Earth in exactly one day, thus constantly hovering over a single spot on its surface. To receive data or entertainment seamlessly, one simply needs to point a directional telecommunications or television antenna at such a satellite. A problem arises when radiation levels sharply increase in the vicinity of geostationary satellites. This can lead to their damage or destruction.
Electromagnetic waves at audible frequencies between tens and thousands of cycles per second contribute significantly to the high variability of the outer radiation belt. These waves are generated naturally by plasma instabilities. When converted into sound, they exhibit a wide variety of bizarre manifestations—ranging from a whisper-like rustling and simple yet distinct hissing to crunching, chirping, twittering, beeping, whistling, and loud hooting, all resembling the sounds of various insect or bird species. The research conducted by scientists from the Department of Space Physics at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences and from the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics at Charles University, published in the journal Nature Communications, focused precisely on these waves.
They concentrated on the correlation between the spatial and temporal distribution of these waves depending on their intensity. The traditional view places them over the morning region, where dawn is occurring on Earth. Based on an extensive analysis of satellite measurements, the Czech team succeeded in proving that these waves are most frequently found over regions where it is noon on Earth, with a probability close to certainty.
However, they are usually not very intense there. Conversely, strong waves are predominantly located over regions where it is shortly after midnight. In those areas, though, they are found with only a low probability of a few percent. Only by combining the probability of occurrence and intensity do we arrive above the morning region, where the long-term average intensity of these waves is the strongest. An analysis of the temporal distribution of electromagnetic wave detections at various intensities also provided interesting results. It turned out that their occurrence is far from random; instead, each subsequent detection depends on previous ones. Moreover, the strength of this correlation varies across different spatial regions.
These results are important for the further development of predictive radiation models in the geostationary orbit region, incorporating the characteristics of electromagnetic waves at audible frequencies. The more we know about them, the better models we can develop. This will result in better forecasts of sudden radiation increases, thereby enabling the protection of telecommunications and television satellites from damage.
Publication: O. Santolík, I. Kolmašová, U. Taubenschuss, M. Hanzelka, Spatiotemporal patterns of lower-band whistler mode waves in the magnetosphere of Earth, Nature Communications, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-75552-1
Illustrative images and audio files: available for download at https://babeta.ufa.cas.cz/santolik/lowerbandpatterns/
Contact:
Ondřej Santolík
Institute of Atmospheric Physics CAS
os@ufa.cas.cz
731 478 881
https://babeta.ufa.cas.cz/santolik
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The Czech Academy of Sciences (the CAS)
The mission of the CAS
The primary mission of the CAS is to conduct research in a broad spectrum of natural, technical and social sciences as well as humanities. This research aims to advance progress of scientific knowledge at the international level, considering, however, the specific needs of the Czech society and the national culture.
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Prof. Radomír Pánek started his first term of office in March 2025. He is a prominent Czech scientist specializing in plasma physics and nuclear fusion.