5.29. Wave Speed http://www.ck12.org
and farthest apart in gases. When particles are farther apart, it takes longer for the energy of the disturbance to
pass from particle to particle through the medium. At the following URL, you can watch an animation showing what
happens when a wave passes from one medium to another. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEjdCAKubCc&featu
re=player_embedded
MEDIA
Click image to the left for use the URL below.
URL: http://www.ck12.org/flx/render/embeddedobject/82409Summary
- Wave speed is the distance a wave travels in a given amount of time, such as the number of meters it travels
per second. - Wave speed is related to wavelength and wave frequency by the equation: Speed = Wavelength x Frequency.
This equation can be used to calculate wave speed when wavelength and frequency are known. - The equation for wave speed can be written to solve for wavelength or frequency if the speed and the other
value are known. - The speed of most waves depends on the medium, or the matter through which they are traveling. Generally,
waves travel fastest through solids and slowest through gases.
Vocabulary
- wave speed: How far a wave travels in a given amount of time; calculated as wavelength multiplied by wave
frequency.
Explore More
Practice calculating wave speed from wavelength and frequency by doing the problems at this URL: http://www.p
hysicsclassroom.com/class/waves/u10l2e.cfm
Review
- What is wave speed?
- What is the speed of a wave that has a wavelength of 2 m and a frequency of 1.5 Hz?
- Calculate the frequency of a wave that is traveling at a speed of 3.0 m/s and has a wavelength of 1.2 m.
- Sound energy travels through matter in waves. Do sound waves travel faster through air or water? Explain
your answer.