Bow Waves

This past weekend I was looking through some of the photos I have on my computer and came across these from this past summer. When I took these pictures, I just took the pictures of the ducks because I thought that they were cute. Now with what I know about waves, I am able to describe why there are waves behind the ducks when they swim, how they form and why they appear the way they do.

As shown by the pattern of these swimmings ducks, the pattern of waves they leave behind them is that of a bow wave. In order for a bow wave to be created, the ducks need to swim at a faster speed than the waves they produce when swimming through the water. The waves the ducks in these pictures create is a two dimensional wave that overlaps at the edges and creates a pattern of waves similar to that of a V-shape. Science is everywhere!

Watch That Flag Move!

Earlier this summer I traveled to Vietnam along with a group of about sixteen fellow Iolani classmates. There we visited many important museums and were able to witness what it was like to live in Vietnam. In Vietnam, I took a great deal of pictures.

These pictures of the Vietnamese flag exhibits the idea of transverse waves as a flag moves in the breeze. The motion of the pulse of the wave creates a series of right angles in the direction of the wave speed, however, the flags motion moves in a transverse direction of the wave. These waves produce a disturbance that repeats regularly in space and time and is transmitted progressively from one place to another with no transport of matter, it is thus, a transport only of energy.

This little Vietnamese boy didn't know he was playing with physics when he was getting ready to fly his Batman kite!

All waves can only be produced if there are vibrations, creating pulses through a medium which the energy is transfered through.