What is Infrasound? How Data Center Noise Causes Health Issues
Data centers create significant noise that can be bothersome to nearby residents from cooling systems, fans, and backup generators. But the silent killer lurking in the shadows of data centers is infrasound.
Data center noise, particularly infrasound, causes a long list of health issues in humans and wildlife.
What is Infrasound?
Infrasound, or low frequency sound, are sound waves with a frequency below the lower limit of human hearing (generally 20 Hz.) Data centers create constant infrasound due to the vibrating frequencies of the cooling systems and fans used to keep them running 24/7.
Infrasound is different from audible noise.
- Audible sounds from a data center can be heard for up to 3 miles.
- Infrasound can travel for thousands of miles, go through buildings and water, and bypass traditional noise mitigation methods.
Have you ever wondered how they keep birds off airport runways? Infrasound generation is one method to keep birds away.
Health Issues Cause by Infrasound Noise from Data Centers
Infrasound causes damage and stress to many animals and impedes some species’ ability to use long range communication with each other. Many species of fish use infrasound to communicate and navigate and are severely impacted by high quantities of infrasound.
In addition to the impacts on animals, infrasound can cause a whole host of physical symptoms in humans:
- vibrating your cells which can trigger a stress response
- increased brain fog and irritability
- headache
- panic disorders
- sleep disturbances
- dizziness
- interference in breathing patterns
- memory issues
These symptoms are particularly impactful among individuals who are exposed chronically due to their home or job being close to industrial sources.
A 2021 study by the National Library of Medicine concluded that exposure to high levels of infrasound interferes with cardiac muscle contractile ability, a.k.a. your heart’s pumping strength, as early as ONE HOUR after exposure.
Constant Noise from Data Centers
Infrasound is all around us, from natural disasters to man-made noise, but the concentrated, constant amount that comes from data centers is enough to trigger a physical response in humans and alter the behavior of animals.
Is the potential tax revenue worth the costly risks to public health?