alleryStart learning →How are sound waves travelling through air and through water classified?
AAs purely transverse waves
BAs standing waves only
CAs longitudinal waves
DAs pulse waves only
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: C. As longitudinal waves
1. Sound waves in air and water are longitudinal.
2. Their disturbances are periodic variations in pressure transmitted through the fluid.
3. A periodic pressure variation is not the same as a standing wave or a one-off pulse.
4. So the correct classification is longitudinal, not transverse, standing, or pulse.
_Source: OpenStax Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 13 "Waves and Their Properties", section Longitudinal Waves and Transverse Waves_
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