The Mystery of the Taos Hum

Imagine if all day long, an annoying hum played in the background. You couldn't get away from it, whether you were at home, in your office, or out with friends. It's a hum that sounds like this:



For some residents of Taos, New Mexico, the hum is an everyday way of life. An estimated two percent of the population can hear the hum, yet when equipment is set up in the homes of Taos residents who claim to be plagued by it, nothing is detected.



There have been many explanations for the phenomenon over the years. Ambient noise is present in every city and some experts believe those who hear the oscillating noise in Taos simply have exceptional hearing.



Some say it's merely an auditory hallucination.


Image Credit: TriVo for Mic
The hum isn't isolated to Taos. In fact, there are areas around the world where a small percentage of the population report hearing a low hum. In each area, the sound has a name that matches the area: the Windsor Hum, the Auckland Hum, etc.



In fact, according to Mic magazine, reported incidents of "the Hum" are extremely widespread. Here is a portion of the World Hum Map, created by Glen MacPhearson:



In some areas, the Hum has led people to commit suicide and report great pain. Even in today's rarely-silent world, it seems there's no escaping the hum if you're one of the two percent who can hear it.



Have you ever heard a strange noise nobody else could hear?