In a classroom experiment the centres of successive compressions of a sound wave…

PHYSICS · Multi-part · A Level · Physics · Waves · Waves

Problem

In a classroom experiment the centres of successive compressions of a sound wave travelling in air are made visible by a row of light pith balls hanging from threads. The distance between the first and the seventh compression along the line of propagation is measured to be 1.02 m1.02\,\text{m}. (i) How many complete wavelengths are contained between these two compressions? (ii) Calculate the wavelength of the sound wave. (iii) If the speed of sound in air is 340 m / s340\,\text{m\,/\,s}, determine the frequency of this wave. (iv) State whether this frequency lies within the normal audible range of human hearing and justify your answer briefly.

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