Mission SM2 Characteristics of Sound Waves

Mission SM2 pertains to commonly-used characteristics of sound waves like amplitude, wavelength, frequency, and speed. The mission consists of 35 questions organized into 9 Question Groups. You must answer one question from each Question Group to complete the mission. The learning outcomes for this mission are ...

• The student should be able to identify and describe the characteristics of amplitude, wavelength and frequency for a sound wave.
• The student should be able to identify factors effecting (and not effecting) the speed of a sound wave.

If you are not familiar with this topic, then you should first learn about the topic using our written Tutorial or our Video Tutorial:
 

The Physics Classroom, Sound and Music Unit, Lesson 2, Part a
 

The Physics Classroom, Sound and Music Unit, Lesson 2, Part b
 

The Physics Classroom, Sound and Music Unit, Lesson 2, Part c

• What characteristic of a sound wave is associated with the relative loudness?
• What characteristic of a sound wave is associated with the pitch of the sound?
• What does the wavelength of a sound wave (or any pressure wave) refer to?
• What is true of a long-wavelength wave that is NOT true of a short-wavelength sound wave?
• What variables would effect the speed of a sound wave?
• For the movement of sound through the same medium, how does an alteration in frequency effect the wavelength and the speed of the sound wave?
• How is frequency, wavelength and speed related to each other?