If you started the motor of a boat in the middle of a lake, who would detect the sound of the motor first: a friend sitting on the shore of the lake, or a friend snorkeling just below the surface of the water along the same shore? Explain your answer.

Question

Liberty Russo

Physics

31 December, 19:42

If you started the motor of a boat in the middle of a lake, who would detect the sound of the motor first: a friend sitting on the shore of the lake, or a friend snorkeling just below the surface of the water along the same shore? Explain your answer.

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Answers (2)

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Phillip Holloway · Answer 1

A friend snorkeling just below the surface of the water along the same shore will detect the sound first.

Explanation:

The speed of sound in water medium is faster than that through the air. Sound propagates through the medium by transferring through the molecules on it. Water has more closely packed molecules due to which the speed is faster. In fact, the sound's speed in water is almost four times faster than that in the air. So the guy in the water surface gets to hear sound faster than the one in sore.

Kaeden Hicks · Answer 2

A friend snorkeling just below the surface of the water along the same shore will detect the sound first.