Planets

Specs

Designed planet sound atmospheres

20 extraterrestrial locations

40 minutes total

Descriptive filenames

96 kHz / 24 bit WAV files

Embedded Soundminer metadata

1.3 GB Zip / Fast download

Content

40 minutes of designed space atmospheres from 20 extraterrestrial locations. Different perspectives, sometimes close to the ground, sometimes far away. Some locations are buzzing with geological and biological activity others seem distant, cold, and lifeless. All planet sounds are constant, ranging from one to three minutes in duration, and can be easily combined to create unique variations of planet sounds, allowing you to dial in your own planet’s soundscape.

Designing Space Sounds

Crafting the auditory landscape of space and planets in films is a fascinating challenge, especially since space is inherently silent due to the absence of an atmosphere for sound waves to travel. Yet, complete silence rarely communicates the awe, mystery, and sometimes danger that space evokes. To bring this vast, unknown realm to life for audiences, we use a variety of creative techniques. Deep, resonant bass tones often serve to convey the boundless expanse and overwhelming emptiness, while subtle ambient textures, like faint hums or distant echoes, help suggest the presence of far-off celestial phenomena.

When designing the soundscapes of planets, we use layered elements to evoke their unique atmospheres—whether it’s the rumble of tectonic shifts beneath the surface, the whooshing of alien winds, or metallic, reverberating sounds that hint at strange, unfamiliar materials. These sounds give a sense of scale and geology, making the planets feel massive, ancient, and mysterious.

To represent extraterrestrial lifeforms, the auditory design becomes even more intricate. We create sounds that range from organic, almost primal growls or clicks to more ethereal, otherworldly tones. By blending familiar elements—such as insect-like chirps or animalistic snarls—with completely alien sound patterns, we give these creatures a sense of being alive but also entirely foreign. This helps create a deeper emotional connection with the audience, making the world feel immersive, as though life in the cosmos has its own sound, even in a vacuum of silence. Through sound design, we can give the universe a voice that resonates with the imagination, even when science tells us it would be quiet.

Fun fact: SHAPINGWAVES sound collections have been licensed and used by NASA for research purposes.