The echo method is used to measure large distance Explanation: The reception of wave after reflection is called ' echo'. Let velocity is the speed of sound in air which is equal to 343 m/s and time is 0.1 s as this the time required by human to hear two sounds clearly. So, the distance traveled by sound is 2d. The distance traveled by sound to create an echo is two times the distance between the source and obstacle. Subsequently, one may also ask, what is Echo give formula for time of Echo? Multiplication by 170 (=340/2) because the sound has travelled the distance twice. Subsequently, question is, how does echo measure distance? If you produce an impulsive sound (clap your hands) and measure the time until you hear the echo from this object, just multiply the number of seconds by 170 and get the distance to the object.

The high speed of sound is responsible for the amusing 'Donald Duck' voice which occurs when someone has breathed in helium. This is consistent with the general relationship for sound speed in gases since the density of helium is so much less than that of air.

A reflected sound can be heard separately from the original sound if the sound source is closer to the receiver while the reflecting hard surface is sufficiently far from receiver. The speed of sound in helium at 0☌ is about 972 m/s, compared to 331 m/s in air. Just so, what do you mean by echo in physics?Įcho is a distinct, reflected sound wave from a surface. t = the time it takes the sound to go back and forth.d = the distance the sound wave traveled back and forth,.Because S-waves do not pass through the liquid core, two shadow regions are produced ( (Figure)). The time between the P- and S-waves is routinely used to determine the distance to their source, the epicenter of the earthquake. The P-wave gets progressively farther ahead of the S-wave as they travel through Earth’s crust. P-waves have speeds of 4 to 7 km/s, and S-waves range in speed from 2 to 5 km/s, both being faster in more rigid material. Both types of earthquake waves travel slower in less rigid material, such as sediments. For that reason, the speed of longitudinal or pressure waves (P-waves) in earthquakes in granite is significantly higher than the speed of transverse or shear waves (S-waves). The bulk modulus of granite is greater than its shear modulus. Earthquakes produce both longitudinal and transverse waves, and these travel at different speeds. Seismic waves, which are essentially sound waves in Earth’s crust produced by earthquakes, are an interesting example of how the speed of sound depends on the rigidity of the medium. The second shell is farther away, so the light arrives at your eyes noticeably sooner than the sound wave arrives at your ears.Īlthough sound waves in a fluid are longitudinal, sound waves in a solid travel both as longitudinal waves and transverse waves. The first shell is probably very close by, so the speed difference is not noticeable. Sound and light both travel at definite speeds, and the speed of sound is slower than the speed of light. For air at sea level, the speed of sound is given by Speed of Sound in Various Media Mediumīecause the speed of sound depends on the density of the material, and the density depends on the temperature, there is a relationship between the temperature in a given medium and the speed of sound in the medium.

Because liquids and solids are relatively rigid and very difficult to compress, the speed of sound in such media is generally greater than in gases. The speed of sound in air is low, because air is easily compressible. This observation is analogous to the fact that the frequency of a simple harmonic motion is inversely proportional to m, the mass of the oscillating object. The greater the density of a medium, the slower the speed of sound. This observation is analogous to the fact that the frequency of simple harmonic motion is directly proportional to the stiffness of the oscillating object as measured by k, the spring constant. In general, the more rigid (or less compressible) the medium, the faster the speed of sound. Is the absolute temperature in kelvins, and M is the molecular mass.

Speed of sound calculator physics