Measuring the Speed of Sound

Millisecond Timer
0.0
ms
Speaker
Microphone
Distance0.00 m
Press play to make a sound.

Experiment Instructions

You are investigating how to measure the speed of sound in air
  1. Drag the microphone to change the distance from the speaker.
  2. Press Play to make a sound and start the timer.
  3. The timer stops when the sound reaches the microphone.
  4. Repeat for several distances.
  5. Calculate speed using v = d รท t.

Results table

Distance (m) Time (ms) Time (s) v = d / t (m/s) Action

Analysis

  • Plot a graph of distance (m) against time (s). What does the gradient represent?