Waves

There are many types of waves in nature. Some of these are light waves, sound waves, radio waves, earthquake waves, water waves and brain waves. Waves are important to learn about since they're just about everywhere! There are two basic kinds of waves: pulse waves, which are non-repeating and periodic waves, which repeat. To have a regularly repeating wave, there must be regularly repeating vibrations.

An important aspect of waves is the frequency. The frequency tells you 'how frequently' they and their source vibrate. It is measured in a unit called the Hertz (Hz). It was named after Heinrich Hertz who was the first scientist to detect radio waves. One hertz, is one vibration per second. Related to frequency is the period of the vibration. The period is the time interval between vibrations. Frequency and period are reciprocals of each other. The Wave Equation: speed of waves (v) = wavelength x frequency (f) This equation is true for any kind of waves. This includes sound waves, electromagnetic waves, waves in strings of musical instruments, and earthquake waves. Click a link below to learn more about these waves.

The Sound Barrier An extreme case of the Doppler Effect happens when an object travels at the same speed of sound. The sound wave compressions bunch up at the front of the object and superimpose over each other. This creates a wall of compressed air- a barrier, called the sound barrier. Once through the sound barrier, objects have much less resistance. These objects are going at supersonic speeds.