Why does sound need medium to travel

Sound needs a Medium As we have discussed earlier, the vibration of an object causes sound, also sounds need medium. Medium is a matter through which sounds is propagated, it can be liquid, gas or solid. This is the reason why astronauts cannot talk with each other directly in space as there is a vacuum in space, hence there is no molecule present that can carry the sound waves.

Because the molecules of solids, liquids, and gases convey sound waves from one point to another, sound requires a material medium such as solid, liquid, or gas to move. Because there are no molecules in the vacuum that can vibrate and convey sound waves, sound cannot travel through it. This means that still the sound is being produced but now we cannot hear it.

This is because sound waves always need a medium to propagate. In the bell jar, it was, hence sound waves cannot travel. Hence, the experiments prove to us that sounds need a medium to propagate. Sample Problems Problem 1: Suppose there is an explosion in space, so now are you able to hear the sound?

If yes why? Solution: No, since in space vacuum is present, so there is no molecule present that can carry the sound waves. Thus, we cannot be able to hear the sound of an explosion.

Problem 2: Write an experiment to illustrate sounds that need a medium for propagation. Solution: We can illustrate this through the bell jar experiment. Take an airtight glass bell jar, so that air cannot leak during the experiment.

Suspend the electric bell inside the bell jar, and switch on the electric connection, now, listen to the sound of the bell. Afterwards, start the connected vacuum pump of the bell jar, meanwhile, you will notice the sound of the bell is no longer audible as before. Gradually when all the air gets the pump out from the jar you will notice you are not able to hear a sound. The above experiments prove that sounds need a medium to propagate.

Problem 3: In which medium sounds propagates fastest and give a reason for this? Sound always needs a medium to travel through and the type of medium determines its speed. The speed of sound through air is about meters per second. Why does sound require a medium to travel and light does not? Sound waves need a medium travel as they travel by Compression and decompression of molecules Like that they can travel through the air, water, etc. How can you prove that sound needs a medium to travel?

Place an electrical bell in the bell jar and pump out the air of the sealed bell jar. Turn on the electric bell. The sound produced by the bell is not audible to our ears. This demonstrates that the sound waves cannot travel through vacuum and it needs a material medium for its propagation. In many ways, sound waves are similar to light waves. They both originate from a definite source and can be distributed or scattered using various means.

Unlike light, sound waves can only travel through a medium, such as air, glass, or metal. Sound waves are travelling vibrations of particles in media such as air, water or metal. So it stands to reason that they cannot travel through empty space, where there are no atoms or molecules to vibrate.

In short, Sound Travels in both directions up and down, Sound is omnidirectional which means it can travel in any way and direction, however, there are some factors that may influence the direction of the sound.

Light contrasts with sound, which travels through the air or some other material medium. So how does light travel? It also behaves as both a wave and a particle, able to propagate through mediums like air and water as well as space.

The speed of light as it travels through air and space is much faster than that of sound; it travels at million meters per second or , miles per hour. Visible light can also travel through other things besides through air and through space.

Sound is a type of energy made by vibrations. These vibrations create sound waves which move through mediums such as air, water and wood. When an object vibrates, it causes movement in the particles of the medium. This movement is called sound waves, and it keeps going until the particles run out of energy.

The 2 types of sound we wont be able to hear are Ultrasonic and Infrasonic. You might ask what is the difference between Ultrasonic and Infrasonic waves. Of the three phases of matter gas, liquid, and solid , sound waves travel the slowest through gases, faster through liquids, and fastest through solids. Waves come in two kinds, longitudinal and transverse.

They cause particles of the medium to vibrate parallel to the direction of wave travel. The vibrations can travel through solids, liquids or gases. The speed of sound depends on the medium through which it is travelling. Sound cannot travel through a vacuum because there are no particles to carry the vibrations. The air is made up of many tiny particles. When sound is created, the air particles vibrate and collide with each other, causing the vibrations to pass between air particles.