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Low frequency faint noise at night


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Home Forums General Forums General Lightweight Backpacking Discussion Low frequency faint noise at night

Viewing 25 posts - 1 through 25 (of 107 total)
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  • #3787258
    Jerry Adams
    BPL Member

    @retiredjerry

    Locale: Oregon and Washington

    When I camp where there’s no stream, ocean, or wind noise I hear this faint noise.

    It fades in and out from second to second

    I think there’s a lot of 60 hz

    I assume it’s from industrial noise far away.  Like 50 miles or more.  All the higher frequencies are filtered out over that distance

    Anyone else hear this?

    I think it’s everywhere in continental U.S.

    #3787259
    Jerry Adams
    BPL Member

    @retiredjerry

    Locale: Oregon and Washington

    If I was Ted kazinski i’de send letter bombs to industrial facilities.

    Is that humor too much?  Maybe I’ve crossed the line with that.

    #3787260
    Luke Schmidt
    BPL Member

    @cameron

    Locale: Alaska

    Could it be a ringing in your ears?

    #3787261
    JCH
    BPL Member

    @pastyj-2-2

    Alien rectal implants use a 60 hz carrier wave for communication.  You may want to see a doctor.

    Did I cross the line with that?

    #3787262
    Terran Terran
    BPL Member

    @terran

    That’s why I carry a grounding tarp.

    #3787265
    PaulW
    BPL Member

    @peweg8

    Locale: Western Colorado

    I hear it too Jerry. I have bad high frequency tinnitus and thought the low frequency noise was an artifact of that, but maybe not. It’s most apparent to me in remote, quiet places. I find it really annoying.

    #3787266
    Jerry Adams
    BPL Member

    @retiredjerry

    Locale: Oregon and Washington

    Good.  No one offended by my humor.  Yet.  Stimulated more humor…

    Interesting thought about tinnitus.  I will have to find a more quiet place to test that.

    It’s not annoying at all.  It just motivates me to figure out what it is.

    I was just listening to In Three Sisters 50 miles from any city.  I first noticed it in Ochoco Mountains about 20 miles from Prineville.  I will have to assess whether it’s louder and higher frequency in the Ochocos.

    #3787267
    David D
    BPL Member

    @ddf

    My home town had the “Windsor Hum” that was a big mystery for years, cause was a steel factory

    Its probably not hearing damage related because tinnitus is almost always higher frequencies but if you want to rule that out, borrow noise canceling headset & try it somewhere that you hear the hum.  If it goes away, its external, if not, internal.

    #3787268
    Todd T
    BPL Member

    @texasbb

    Locale: Pacific Northwest

    I wouldn’t worry about it.  Unless, of course, it’s low-frequency voices you’re hearing.

    #3787271
    Jerry Adams
    BPL Member

    @retiredjerry

    Locale: Oregon and Washington

    Low frequency voices telling me to send letter bombs to industrialists?

    Looking at Oregon map, somewhere in far southeast Oregon is farther away from any city., maybe less noise.

    Ted Kazinski said he sent letter bombs to industrialists because they were ruining nature.  He mentioned a bird that started imitating the sound of car alarms.  Thus, he tried to undo the damage by sending letter bombs.  I was just thinking this low frequency noise was similar – there is nowhere in the U.S. where you can get away from it.  At least that’s my theory.  Unless it’s tinnitus…

    #3787273
    MJ H
    BPL Member

    @mjh

    Thus, he tried to undo the damage by sending letter bombs.

    When you put it that way, he sounds like a Batman villain.

    #3787275
    jscott
    BPL Member

    @book

    Locale: Northern California

    “Unless it’s tinnitus…”

    Welcome to my world. Yeah, one often doesn’t notice it until it gets very quiet.

    I’ve sent about a hundred letter bombs to various people over the years and that hasn’t cured my tinnitus. I finally asked my ENT and he said that tinnitus is very, very common in the population. One learns to ignore it in most situations. That’s why we’re surprised when , alone in silence, it becomes more apparent. Where did that come from? It’s there all along, but we’ve dialed it out. I’ve become very good at dialing it out when I’m alone working on my secret project to destroy civilization using technology adopted from an old Svea and several pounds of Kimchi.

    #3787276
    Dan
    BPL Member

    @dan-s

    Locale: Colorado

    So many things accumulate over the years and never go away: tinnitus, floaters, all kinds of chronic pain.

    Anybody ever read the Larry Niven novel “Protector?” I am ready for the tree-of-life root.

    #3787277
    Bill Budney
    BPL Member

    @billb

    Locale: Central NYS

    Low frequency tinnitus happens.

    Try the noise canceling headphones as David D suggested. It won’t help with tinnitus but it should clarify the internal/external question.

    #3787295
    MJ H
    BPL Member

    @mjh

    I have pretty bad tinnitus, but it’s never bothered me when camping. I sleep pretty hard when I’ve been hiking. I have heard a low frequency hum at night too. It was when I slept on the ground floor (in our house) when we lived in North Carolina. I think that was industrial, but I never did figure out what. It wasn’t tinnitus though.

    #3787328
    Marcus
    BPL Member

    @mcimes

    @teran teran lol. that is the best nerd joke ever

    I Also have heard it many places from CT to MN to CA and more. I assume it’s some industrial process. Low frequency sound can travel very far and I bet mountains or certain geological features can act like massive bass ports.

    My best guess is mining, petroleum refining, or power generation equipment because I have heard the hum at all hours of the day

    #3787329
    Jerry Adams
    BPL Member

    @retiredjerry

    Locale: Oregon and Washington

    Sort of like Saul’s brother who had aluminum foil on all the walls to keep out whatever…

    So you’ve heard the same thing too, I’m not crazy.

    From ochoco mountain there are only central oregon cities like prineville and bend.  I don’t think they have a lot of heavy industry.  No petroleum.  Probably some saw mills.

    From three sisters is eugene.  More manufacturing there.

    #3787331
    David D
    BPL Member

    @ddf

    Could it be infrasonic from windmills?

    #3787332
    Steve S
    BPL Member

    @steve_s-2

    #3787335
    John S.
    BPL Member

    @jshann

    Jerry, if I sleep in my tinfoil beanie, the noises (and voices) go away.

    #3787337
    Terran Terran
    BPL Member

    @terran

    Dyneemamo Hum? Frank Zappa.

    #3787339
    Jerry Adams
    BPL Member

    @retiredjerry

    Locale: Oregon and Washington

    Steve, that is a good explanation in wikipedia.  I knew someone would answer my question.

    The jumping back and forth between humor and seriousness is making my head spin.  Perfect :)

    #3787341
    Terran Terran
    BPL Member

    @terran

    Think of all the energy expelled in nature. The grass growing. The constant displacement of air and soil. Moisture levels in the ground effecting the imbalance of ions. The static from the wind. A huge accumulation of iron. A steel mill perhaps.  While ears block these sounds out, it would be too chaotic to process it all. We focus on what’s important at the time.

    Perhaps you’re only hearing nature.

     

    https://bigthink.com/hard-science/schumann-resonance-earths-heartbeat/

    #3787343
    Jerry Adams
    BPL Member

    @retiredjerry

    Locale: Oregon and Washington

    I found audio of schumann wave

    https://insighttimer.com/Shifternity/guided-meditations/deep-brown-noise-schumann-resonance-7-dot-83hz-theta-waves#:~:text=Deep%20Brown%20Noise%20%2D%20Schumann%20Resonance%207.83Hz%20(Theta%20Waves),-by%20Shifternity%20%2D%20Brainwave&text=It%20has%20a%20deep%20frequency,healthy%20sleep%2C%20and%20soothe%20headaches.

    Nope, that’s not what I hear.

    What I hear varies intensity over a period of about 1/2 second.  More low frequency and less high frequency.

    When I’m not trying to get a photo of the Andromeda Galaxy on my phone, I’ll have to try to record the low frequency faint noise

    #3787346
    Steve S
    BPL Member

    @steve_s-2

    Good luck with your recording Jerry. The lower limit of human hearing is about 20Hz, so few common recording devices are likely to be reliable down there.

    We have a subduction zone a bit off the west coast. I doubt moving that much rock is silent, however taffy-like the subducting rock might be at those temperatures and pressures. I also doubt that the sound would present itself at the surface uniformly due to intervening geology. Points of resonance and focus would be likely for the low frequency, crustally modified sounds. So, one of the Earth’s low frequency “screams” may be an explanation.

    An excuse to get a really good mic (and a recording oscilloscope app for your phone) and to go hiking in a lot of places world-wide to gather data.

Viewing 25 posts - 1 through 25 (of 107 total)
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