Creekview Physics
Sound Waves
Madison Gordon
GeddesPhysics
Sound Waves Virtual Lab
Answer the following questions. You do not have to do a formal lab report.
Listen to a Single Source:
1. Observe the sound waves coming from the speaker.
a) What do the dark and light bands represent? (Remember, sound
waves are longitudinal waves.)
- Compressions and rarefactions.
b) Why do the waves get lighter with distance from the speaker?
- They are losing energy and getting smaller because of interaction
with air.
c) How does changing the frequency and amplitude affect the depiction of
the sound waves in the simulation?
- Changing the frequency is you decrease them, the waves become
further apart. Increasing the frequency, they become closer
together. When changing the amplitude, if you increase the
amplitude, the waves become more compressed.
d) How do you think changing the frequency and amplitude affect the sound
heard by the listener?
- When you increase the amplitude it makes the sound louder, when
you increase the frequency it make the pitch higher.
Measure:
2. Press “start” and move the ruler to the center of the speaker.
a) Describe how you would find the period of a wave without using
the frequency information. Test your idea with a variety of waves
and record your experiment in a data table. Check your method by
Creekview Physics
Sound Waves
Madison Gordon
GeddesPhysics
calculating the period using the frequency (T = 1/f). Show
calculations.
Here’s a data table for you to use:
# of Waves:

Frequency:
Period:
4
0.0127
314.961
3.175x10^-3
3
0.0097
309.278
3.233x10^-3
2
0.0071
281.690
3.550x10^-3
5
0.0167
299.401
3.34x10^-3
b) Hit stop and reset, and measure the distance a wave travels in a
certain amount of time. Make a data table and do at least 3 trials.
Find the speed of sound using v = d/t.
Distance:
Time:
Velocity:
4.6 meters.
0.0145
317.241
5 meters.
0.0167
299.401
2.5 meters.
0.0079
316.456
2.7 meters.
0.0085
317.647
c) Use the ruler to measure the wavelength of this sound wave. Check
the speed calculated above using v = fλ.
-
Wavelength = 4.3 meters.
Frequency = 328.244
Velocity = 1411.45