CHARACTERISTICS OF WAVES

TYPES OF WAVES

MECHANICAL

• A mechanical wave is a disturbance in matter that transfers energy from place to place.

The Medium

• The energy of a mechanical wave can travel only through matter
• Can be a liquid solid or gas

Transverse Waves

Longitudinal Waves

• A longitudinal wave is a wave in which the medium vibrates in the same direction that the wave travels

Surface Waves

• A surface wave is a wave that travels along the surface of a medium
• It combines a transverse wave and a longitudinal wave. Ocean waves are surface waves. They travel on the surface of the water between the ocean and the air. In a surface wave, particles of the medium move up and down as well as back and forth. This gives them an overall circular motion.

Compressions and Rarefactions

• A longitudinal wave can be characterized by the compressions and rarefactions of the medium. ....Compressions are the places where the coils are crowded together, and rarefactions are the places where the coils are spread apart.

QUESTIONS

• What is a mechanical wave? 2. Identify the medium of the wave in Figure 1.1. 3. Describe the compressions and rarefactions of a longitudinal wave. 4. What are surface waves? Give an example. 5. State how a particle of the medium moves when a surface wave passes through it.

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6. DRAW A SKETCH OF A TRANSVERSE WAVE. LABEL THE CRESTS AND TROUGHS,

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