What is the difference between wave frequency and wave velocity

For that reason, the time difference between the P- and S-waves is used to determine the distance to their source, the epicenter of the earthquake. We know from seismic waves produced by earthquakes that parts of the interior of Earth are liquid.

In contrast, compression or longitudinal waves can pass through a liquid and they do go through the core. All waves carry energy, and the energy of earthquake waves is easy to observe based on the amount of damage left behind after the ground has stopped moving. Earthquakes can shake whole cities to the ground, performing the work of thousands of wrecking balls. The amount of energy in a wave is related to its amplitude.

Large-amplitude earthquakes produce large ground displacements and greater damage. As earthquake waves spread out, their amplitude decreases, so there is less damage the farther they get from the source. What is the relationship between the propagation speed, frequency, and wavelength of the S-waves in an earthquake? In this animation, watch how a string vibrates in slow motion by choosing the Slow Motion setting. Select the No End and Manual options, and wiggle the end of the string to make waves yourself.

Then switch to the Oscillate setting to generate waves automatically. Adjust the frequency and the amplitude of the oscillations to see what happens. Then experiment with adjusting the damping and the tension. Which of the settings—amplitude, frequency, damping, or tension—changes the amplitude of the wave as it propagates? What does it do to the amplitude? Calculate the wave velocity of the ocean wave in the previous figure if the distance between wave crests is This slow speed seems reasonable for an ocean wave.

Note that in the figure, the wave moves to the right at this speed, which is different from the varying speed at which the seagull bobs up and down. The woman in Figure What is the velocity of a wave whose wavelength is 2 m and whose frequency is 5 Hz? If students are struggling with a specific objective, these questions will help identify such objective and direct them to the relevant content. When is the wavelength directly proportional to the period of a wave?

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Table of contents. Chapter Review. Test Prep. By the end of this section, you will be able to do the following: Define amplitude, frequency, period, wavelength, and velocity of a wave Relate wave frequency, period, wavelength, and velocity Solve problems involving wave properties. Teacher Support The learning objectives in this section will help your students master the following standards: 7 Science concepts. The student knows the characteristics and behavior of waves. Proper knowledge in these concepts is required in order to excel in fields such as classical mechanics, quantum mechanics and even simple fields like acoustics.

In this article, we are going to discuss what wave frequency and wave velocity are, their definitions, the similarities of wave velocity and wave frequency, and finally the differences between wave velocity and wave frequency.

Frequency is a concept discussed in periodic motions of objects. To understand the concept of frequency, a proper understanding of periodic motions is required.

A periodic motion can be considered as any motion that repeats itself in a fixed time period. A planet revolving around the sun is a periodic motion. A satellite orbiting around the earth is a periodic motion; even the motion of a balance ball set is a periodic motion. Most of the periodic motions we encounter are circular, linear or semi-circular.

A periodic motion has a frequency. For simplicity, we take frequency as the occurrences per second. Periodic motions can either be uniform or non-uniform. The data in rows of the table above demonstrate that a change in the frequency of a wave does not affect the speed of the wave. The speed remained a near constant value of approximately The small variations in the values for the speed were the result of experimental error, rather than a demonstration of some physical law.

The data convincingly show that wave frequency does not affect wave speed. An increase in wave frequency caused a decrease in wavelength while the wave speed remained constant. The last three trials involved the same procedure with a different rope tension. Observe that the speed of the waves in rows is distinctly different than the speed of the wave in rows The obvious cause of this difference is the alteration of the tension of the rope.

The speed of the waves was significantly higher at higher tensions. Waves travel through tighter ropes at higher speeds. So while the frequency did not affect the speed of the wave, the tension in the medium the rope did. In fact, the speed of a wave is not dependent upon causally affected by properties of the wave itself.

Rather, the speed of the wave is dependent upon the properties of the medium such as the tension of the rope. One theme of this unit has been that "a wave is a disturbance moving through a medium.

These media are distinguished by their properties - the material they are made of and the physical properties of that material such as the density, the temperature, the elasticity, etc. Such physical properties describe the material itself, not the wave. On the other hand, waves are distinguished from each other by their properties - amplitude, wavelength, frequency, etc. These properties describe the wave, not the material through which the wave is moving.

The lesson of the lab activity described above is that wave speed depends upon the medium through which the wave is moving. Only an alteration in the properties of the medium will cause a change in the speed. A teacher attaches a slinky to the wall and begins introducing pulses with different amplitudes.

Which of the two pulses A or B below will travel from the hand to the wall in the least amount of time? Justify your answer. See Answer They reach the wall at the same time. Don't be fooled! The amplitude of a wave does not affect the speed at which the wave travels. Both Wave A and Wave B travel at the same speed. The speed of a wave is only altered by alterations in the properties of the medium through which it travels. The teacher then begins introducing pulses with a different wavelength.

Which of the two pulses C or D will travel from the hand to the wall in the least amount of time? The wavelength of a wave does not affect the speed at which the wave travels. Both Wave C and Wave D travel at the same speed. See Answer Answer: B. Two waves are traveling through the same container of nitrogen gas. Wave A has a wavelength of 1. Wave B has a wavelength of 4. See Answer Answer: C. The medium is the same for both of these waves "the same container of nitrogen gas".