Question

Pleasee help A person sitting on a pier observes incoming waves that have a sinusoidal form with a distance of 2.5 m between the crests. If a wave laps against the pier every 5.0 s, what are (a) the frequency and (b) the speed of the wave?

Remember to identity all of your data, write the equation, and show your work. Additionally, be sure you have answered both a and b of this question.​

Answer 1

• frequency: 1/5 Hz
• speed: 0.5 m/s

Explanation:

Given a wavelength of 2.5 m and a period of 5.0 s, you want the frequence of the waves and their speed.

Frequency

The frequency is the inverse of the period.

f = 1/T

For T = 5.0 s, ...

f = 1/(5.0 s)

f = 1/5 Hz

Speed

The speed is the distance traveled (wavelength) divided by the time it takes:

speed = λ/T = (2.5 m)/(5.0 s)

speed = 0.5 m/s

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Additional comment

The SI derived unit of frequency is hertz (Hz). It has units of s⁻¹ (inverse seconds). Before the units were named "hertz", they were called "cycles per second" or "cps" or using the symbol ~, as in 1/5 ~.

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