According to the NASA Exoplanet Archive, the number of known exoplanets passed 5,000 on March 21, 2022. A time-lapse animation and sonification of humanity's discovery of planets beyond our solar system. By converting NASA data into sound, users can hear the pace of discovery, with notes providing additional information.

A circle appears when an exoplanet is found in the sky. Planet detection methods are indicated by the color of the circle and the size of the planet's orbit. The music is created by playing a note for each newly discovered world. The pitch of the note indicates the relative orbital period of the planet. Planets that take a longer time to orbit their stars are heard as lower notes, while planets that orbit more quickly are heard as higher notes.

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/M. Russo, A. Santaguida (SYSTEM Sounds)