Types of Waves

A wave is a disturbance that travels through a medium, such as water or air, and transfers energy from one place to another. A wave does not transfer matter, but it does transfer energy.

Table of Contents:

• Types of Waves
• Mechanical Waves
• Electromagnetic Waves
• FAQs

Types of Waves

Think about when you drop a pebble into a calm lake. Ripples spread out from the point where the pebble hit the water, and these ripples are an example of a wave. The energy from the pebble’s fall is transferred through the water, causing the ripples to move away from the point of impact.

Another example of a wave is a sound wave. Sound waves travel through the air, and they are created by vibrations in a solid, liquid, or gas. For example, when you play a musical instrument, the vibrations of the strings or reeds cause sound waves to travel through the air and reach your ear.

Waves can also have different properties, such as wavelength, frequency, and amplitude.

Wavelength is the distance between two peaks of a wave, frequency is the number of waves that pass a fixed point in a given time period, and amplitude is the height of a wave from its midpoint to its highest peak.

These properties help to describe and understand different types of waves, such as light waves and radio wave

Waves can be categorized into: Mechanical Waves and Electromagnetic Waves.

Mechanical Waves

Mechanical waves are waves that require a medium, such as a solid, liquid, or gas, to transfer energy from one place to another. Unlike electromagnetic waves, which can travel through a vacuum, mechanical waves cannot travel through a vacuum because they need a medium to transfer energy.

Two common examples of mechanical waves are sound waves and ocean waves.

Sound waves are created by vibrations in a solid, liquid, or gas and travel through the air to reach our ears. For example, when you speak, the vibrations of your vocal cords cause sound waves to travel through the air and reach someone’s ear.

Ocean waves are created by the wind blowing over the surface of the water. The wind creates ripples that grow into larger waves, which can travel across the ocean. When the waves reach the shore, they transfer their energy to the shore, causing the water to move up and down, creating the waves that you see at the beach.

These are just two examples of mechanical waves, but there are many others, such as seismic waves, which are created by earthquakes, and surface waves, which are created by objects moving across the surface of a liquid.

Electromagnetic Waves

Electromagnetic waves are waves that don’t need a medium, such as a solid, liquid, or gas, to transfer energy. Instead, they can travel through a vacuum, which means they can travel through empty space.

Electromagnetic waves are made up of oscillating electric and magnetic fields that are perpendicular to one another and to the direction of wave propagation. The motion of charged particles creates these fields, and they transfer energy through space.

There are many types of electromagnetic waves, including radio waves, microwaves, infrared radiation, visible light, ultraviolet radiation, X-rays, and gamma rays.

Here are a few examples of electromagnetic waves that you might be familiar with:

Radio Waves: These are the longest electromagnetic waves and are used for communication, such as in radio and television broadcasting.

Microwaves: These are used for communication and for cooking food in a microwave oven.

Infrared Radiation: This is the type of electromagnetic wave that gives off heat, such as from a stove or a radiator.

Visible Light: This is the type of electromagnetic wave that our eyes can see, such as from the sun or a light bulb.

Ultraviolet Radiation: This is the type of electromagnetic wave that can cause sunburns and is also used in black lights.

X-rays: These are used to see inside the body, such as in medical X-rays.

Gamma Rays: These are the shortest electromagnetic waves produced by nuclear reactions.

These are just a few examples of the many different types of electromagnetic waves. Each type of electromagnetic wave has a different wavelength and frequency, which determines its properties and how it interacts with matter.

Types of Waves FAQs

Grade 7 Science Worksheets

• Elements and Compounds
• Solar Energy
• Photosynthesis
• Electricity and Magnetism
• Law of conservation of energy
• Periodic table
• Properties of Matter
• Waves
• Energy Resources 
• Weather and Climate
• Immune, Circulatory and Digestive Systems
• Organs in Multi-cellular Organism
• Sedimentary, Igneous, and Metamorphic Rocks
• Structure of the Earth
• Law of Conservation of Mass
• Physical and Chemical Changes
• Scientific Method
• Human Digestive System
• Environmental Science
• Renewable and Non-renewable energy Resources
• Characteristics of Living Organisms
• Life Science
• Earth and Space Science
• Solar Eclipse
• Heat Technology
• Newton’s Laws of Motions
• Physical Science
• Tools, Measurement and SI Units
• Earth Atmosphere
• Interactions of Living things
• The Earth Ecosystem
• Organelles in Plant and Animal cells
• Layers of the Earth
• Cycles in Nature

Grade 7 Math Worksheets

• Fractions
• Linear equations word problems
• Statistics
• Properties of Parallel Line 
• Finding slope from an equation
• Identifying Quadrilaterals
• Percent Change
• Properties of addition and multiplication
• Pythagorean Theorem
• Solving two step inequalities
• Symmetry
• Fractions to Decimals (New)
• Whole Number Exponents with Integer Bases (New)
• Adding and Subtracting Fractions (New)
• Integer Addition and Subtraction (New)
• Dividing Mixed Numbers (New)
• Basics of Coordinate Geometry (New)