Waves!!

Living in Hawaii, we are so fortunate to have visuals of waves in our own backyard! Although I am usually busy during the weekends, I was able to take time out of my schedule to enjoy some sun and waves! I had always wondered how waves work (how they are formed or how they break), and now that I know, I can pass it on to you!

Waves are formed by wind. When the wind interacts with the surface of the water, there is a transfer of energy between the two that results in waves! The wind affects the size, speed, and duration of the wave, therefore, the stronger the wind, the faster/larger/longer the waves will be.

When waves get closer to the shore, they hit the floor of the sea and looses energy. Due to friction, the waves begin slowing down, or shoaling, while still moving. The part of the wave that slows down the most is the part closest to the bottom, where friction is the greatest. This is why the top (crest) of the wave seems to curl over the bottom (top is faster than bottom). The speed difference causes the wave to break!

Betcha didin't know that!

This is a picture of the waves in Sandy's where I got to watch people body board. You can see that the part of the wave that is moving faster is the part that is breaking over the surfers. The waves are such beautiful things!

Principle of Superposition!!

This week we learned all about superposition! So what exactly is superposition?

It's when two waves interfere, the resulting displacement of the medium at any location is the algebraic sum of the displacements of the individual waves at that same location!

In class we were asked the question: do waves bounce off of each other or travel through each other? This baffled some of us - we've never thought of that! Well, through an experiment with a slinky we found that waves travel through each other! We also learned that two waves can be in the same place at the same time! What? It's when one wave is super imposed upon another. When one wave interacts with another, they can either have constructive interferences or destructive interferences. 

Constructive interference is a type of interference that occurs at any location along the medium where the two interfering waves have a displacement in the same direction. These wave forms interact and make bigger waves. Total constructive interference occurs when waves have the same wavelength and amplitude, making the resultant wave two times as big.

Destructive interference is a type of interference that occurs at any location along the medium where the two interfering waves have a displacement in the opposite direction. Total destructive interference occurs when waves have the same wavelength and amplitude, but result in a straight line (disturbances cancel out).

(Pictures courtesy of Physics Classroom)

Waves!!

Although we can't always see them, waves are all around us! Living in Hawaii, we are able to see ocean waves all around us. However, we are also surrounded by light waves, sound waves, and so many more!

Here is a typical wave from the shores of Hawaii. Ocean waves are a combination of both longitudinal and transverse waves.

There are two main types of waves: longitudinal and transverse. Longitudinal waves are waves in which its disturbance is parallel to its direction of travel. Earthquakes and sound waves are examples of  On the other hand, transverse waves are in which its disturbance is perpendicular to its direction of travel. A stadium crowd wave is an example of a longitudinal wave.

One wavelength is measured from one spot of the wave until it reaches the same spot. Waves can transport through materials which are known as mediums. For example, the medium that sound waves travel through is air.

This weekend was Junior Prom! Although it was a break from school, we were surrounded by physics! During the dancing portion of the night, there were lightwaves and sound waves all around us. The DJ put a song on and the speakers played the music. Sound waves from the speaker traveled through the air (medium) to our ears so that we could dance!