The wave videos you will study in this lab are made using a rippletank. A ripple tank is a shallow container with a glass bottom. This container is filled with water and a variety of wave effects can be created in the water.
How the waves are observed: A bright light shines down on the water, through the glass bottom, and illuminates the white table beneath the tank. When disturbances (waves) are made in the water, the curved surfaces of the water act like lenses and distort the light passing through, creating bright and dark areas on the table.
Wave crests cause bright areas to appear on the table
and troughs create dimmer regions.
The wave here is difficult to see because the photo has
been magnified and is not moving, video will show the wave more clearly.
The rubber tube will be used for certain reflection activities. The
acryllic plates are 17.5 cm long and will be used as barriers in some sections
and to create shallow areas in the section on refraction.
Making Cirular Waves:
Most of the circular waves in this lab are made by dipping
an small object, such as a pencil tip, in the water. This is shown
here:
