Characteristics of Waves
Crest - The highest point of a wave
Trough - The lowest point of a wave
Amplitude - The maximum distance that the particles of a waves medium vibrate from their rest position
Wavelength - The distance from any point on a wave to an identical point on the next wave
Period - The time required for one full wavelength of a wave to pass a certain point
Frequency - The number of full wavelengths that passes a point in a given time interval
Doppler Effect - An observed change in the frequency of a wave when the source or observer is moving
Vocabulary
Learning Target(s):
Students will identify and describe various parts of a wave.
Stuents will calculate wave speed, and frequency.
The Doppler Effect
The Doppler Effect is described as a change of an impact of a wave from a certain perspective.
An example of the Doppler Effect would be an ambulance passing by you with its siren turned up loud. When it passed right by you, it sounds the loudest, but as it moves away, the sound gets quieter. This is a Doppler Effect because the frequency of the sound wave did not change, however, the perspective did.
Parts of a Wave
1.) Crest
2.) Wavelength
3.) Amplitude
4.) Distance/time (Frequency)
5.) Trough
Mechanical Waves Speed through Mediums
The waves travel faster in dense mediums because the particles are closer together, as where if the particles were farther apart, they would have to take the time to look for eachother to transfer the wave.
Electromagnetic Waves Speed Through Mediums
The speed of the wave remains consistent because it's traveling through a vacuum.
Calculating Speed
The formula for calculating a waves speed in taking the frequency of the waves, and multiplying it by the wavelength. They are measured in hertz, and m/s.
Ex: A sound wave travels at the frequency of 10 seconds, and the wavelength is 2 meters, so the speed is 20 m/s.
A wave traveling in water has a frequency of 250 Hz and a wavelength of 6.0 m.
The speed of the wave would be 1.500 Hz m/s.
A wave has many characteristics that make it what it is. Some of the characteristics are its frequency and wavelength which dtermines its speed. Also there is its crest and trough which are just the top point and bottom point of a wave.
Video
This video is a good way to go over the characteristics (or propierties) of waves. It covers every point of a wave.