5.24. Longitudinal Wave http://www.ck12.org
- Places where particles of the medium crowd closer together are called compressions. Places where particles
of the medium spread farther apart are called rarefactions. - Earthquakes cause longitudinal waves called P waves, which pass through underground rocks.
Vocabulary
- longitudinal wave: Wave in which particles of the medium vibrate in the same direction that the wave travels.
Explore More
Watch the animation of a longitudinal wave at the following URL, and then answer the questions below. http://w
ww.phy.hk/wiki/englishhtm/Lwave.htm
- In which direction is the wave traveling?
- What does the red line represent?
- Describe how the red line moves.
Review
- What is a longitudinal wave?
- Draw a sketch of a longitudinal wave. Use arrows to show the direction of the wave and the direction of the
vibrating particles of the medium. Add labels to identify the compressions and rarefactions. - Describe P waves.