Was the Big Bang the Loudest Thing Ever?

Thanks for connecting with me on Blogspot. First up, as you'll see, this is my first post, but one of many I hope. Here, I'll be expounding on such weighty topics as astronomy and cosmology (and often others aspects of science too), and updating you on my creative pursuits, namely writing and music production.

For starters, take a look at my page for The Bergamese Sect where you can find details of this, my debut novel. If you like a good thriller (think Simon Toyne, John Case, Sam Bourne or even Dan Brown), then please buy a copy, and do let me know what you think.

Also, take a quick meander over to my driftbox page where you will find a link to my music site. Strangely, for a music site, there is no music there yet, but it will be coming just as soon as it's finished! In the meantime, you can follow my updates here or why not follow the fan page so you're the first to know what driftbox are up to.

So, what about the title of this post, you're asking! Well, in a recent column I wrote for BBC Focus Magazine I was asked whether the Big Bang was the loudest thing ever. So, if you're wondering, here's my answer, expanded a little, just like the Universe...

The Big Bang did in fact create sound. We can deduce the scale of these sound waves by observing the tiny temperature variations in the relic radiation from the Big Bang, called the Cosmic Microwave Background. Their wavelength is measured in hundreds of thousands of light years, so the actual notes are far too low to be heard by humans. As a rough estimate we can calculate the loudness of these waves to be between 100dB and 120dB.

Although this is near the human ear’s pain threshold (similar to standing next to a chainsaw or about 100m from a jet engine), it is by no means the loudest thing you could experience. The loudest rock band on Earth is Manowar who achieved 139dB during a sound-check in 2009, or about 100 times louder than the Big Bang. It is estimated that the eruption of Krakatoa produced sound waves at about 180dB at a range of 100 miles. The blue whale is the loudest animal on Earth, reaching 188dB. Probably the loudest thing on Earth was the explosion of the Tunguska Meteor (1908) at about 300dB.

But of course, plutonium rock band Disaster Area are generally held to be not only the loudest rock band in the Galaxy, but in fact the loudest noise of any kind at all...

See you next time...

BBC Focus Magazine

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