Mercury, Venus, Musica Universalis
Mercury, Venus, Musica Universalis. The Music of the Spheres. The Musical Harmony of the Planets. Mercury makes beautiful music. If you’re on Mercury it takes two years to experience one day. This 2:1 ratio is what’s called the ‘perfect octave’ in music theory. It is also encoded into the geometry of a triangle. The circle inside a triangle is exactly one half the size of the circle outside it. Coincidentally (or not) the triangle also defines the orbital relationships between Mercury, and the next planet out, Venus. The perfect octave is the first harmonic interval followed by the ‘perfect fifth’ which is also extremely pleasant to the human ear. This 3:2 ratio is reflected in the temporal patterns of Mercury. Every two ‘years’, Mercury rotates on its axis three times, which suggests the concept of the ‘Music of the Spheres’ was meant to be…