I once met a guy who worked in radio on a plane, and he said that when they interview people with interesting jobs (he thought astronomer qualified), he always asked them what sound should be played to set up the piece.  Astronomy is historically a very visual science, and so it took me a minute to identify a characteristic sound.  I think it has to be the noise of a dome turning to keep the shutter aligned with the telescope.

Because of the rotation of the Earth, a telescope has to move to follow objects while you’re taking data.  When you’re observing from the ground at many observatories, the control room is in the same building as the telescope.  So, while the instrument is taking data, you occasionally hear the deep rumble as the dome turns.  It’s one of my favourite sounds.

I was once observing at the Shane Telescope at Lick Observatory (see image below) with a graduate student who only had experience at Keck – the 10m-class telescopes on Mauna Kea.  Because observing at 14,000 ft is difficult if you’re not used to the altitude, the control room is at a lower altitude.  When the Shane turned, he looked at me and said, “What is that?”  He’d never heard the dome rumble before.

 

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