alleryStart learning →Which of these is a transverse wave?
AA sound wave travelling through the air
BA sound wave travelling through water
CA pressure pulse moving along a pipe
DA wave on the string of a guitar
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: D. A wave on the string of a guitar
1. A transverse wave disturbs the medium at right angles to the direction it travels.
2. A guitar string is displaced sideways while the wave runs along the string, so it is transverse.
3. Sound in air and in water is longitudinal, since the disturbance is a pressure change along the path.
4. A pressure pulse in a pipe is longitudinal for the same reason.
_Source: OpenStax College Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 16 "Oscillatory Motion and Waves", section Transverse and Longitudinal Waves_
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