Follow research that’s making astronomy accessible to visually impaired people

Cutting-edge research at the University of Southampton is working towards making astronomy accessible to visually impaired people. This research, lead by Dr Poshak Gandhi, uses software to transform astronomical data into audible sound in a process called ‘sonification’.

What is sonification?

Changes in pitch, rhythm or volume in the sound sequence are used to signify modules to the data, which can then be identified by the user. This is essentially how sighted people identify patterns amongst noise with their eyes.

As the human brain is particularly adept at picking out patterns, listeners can pick out small features and patterns from the background of random noise. This increased perception enables visually impaired people to engage with astronomy, while also enhancing sighted people’s research via a new multi-sensorial channel.

The ultimate aim is to make the software open-source, so that it can be used by any visually-impaired person to engage with data. 

The work is in collaboration with Johanna Casado from the University of Mendoza in Argentina and Dr Wanda Díaz-Merced from the International Astronomy Union (IAU) in South Africa. Dr Díaz-Merced developed sonification for astronomy after losing her sight as an undergraduate and is advancing the innovation through a partnership with Southampton’s School of Physics and Astronomy.

You can read more about how sonification works in this article from the charity Southampton Sight. 

Register your interest

The sonification project is still in its early stages, and the team has carried out demonstrations with individuals on a one to one basis. In the near future, the team aims to carry out further testing with visually impaired volunteers.

You can stay up to date on progress, or register your interest in taking part in testing sessions by providing us with your email address. You can use our enquiry form to register your interest.