Glenn Research Center in the context of Brook Park, Ohio

Noise is sound, chiefly unwanted, unintentional, or harmful sound considered unpleasant, loud, or disruptive to mental or hearing faculties. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrations through a medium, such as air or water. The difference arises when the brain receives and perceives a sound. Acoustic noise is any sound in the acoustic domain, either deliberate (e.g., music or speech) or unintended.

Noise may also refer to a random or unintended component of an electronic signal, whose effects may not be audible to the human ear and may require instruments for detection. It can also refer to an intentionally produced random signal or spectral noise, such as white noise or pink noise.