What Are Waves?
Toss a small stone into a pool of water. Waves are formed from the point the stone hit the water. The waves form a circular pattern around this entry point and spread farther and farther apart. When you look at these waves from the side you can see the crests (high points) and troughs (low points). These Water Waves Form A Circular Pattern Click On The Picture To See Movie There are several different types of waves. Sound and light are two types of waves. To control sound, light or water waves, engineers need to understand how waves are created, behave and move. Not all waves behave in the same way. For example, light can travel through the void of outer space but sound must travel through air or some other type of material. Sound Waves Sound waves also are known as compression waves. Compression means to press or squeeze together. (The opposite of compression is expansion, to increase in size or volume.) Sound waves are produced by a series of compressions and expansions within the ma
