If you are standing on the edge of a canyon and yell into the canyon, how long will it take the echo to return to you if the opposite canyon wall is 1060.4 m away and the air temperature is 25.2 C?
To determine the time it takes for the echo to return, you need to calculate the time it takes for sound to travel to the opposite canyon wall and back.
The speed of sound in air depends on the temperature of the air. You can use the following formula to calculate the speed of sound:
v = 331.4 + 0.6 * T
Where v is the speed of sound in meters per second and T is the temperature in degrees Celsius.
In this case, the temperature is given as 25.2°C. Plugging this value into the formula, we get:
v = 331.4 + 0.6 * 25.2
= 331.4 + 15.12
= 346.52 m/s
Now that we know the speed of sound in air, we can calculate the time it takes for the sound to travel to the opposite canyon wall and back. The distance to the opposite canyon wall is given as 1060.4 m.
To calculate the time, we can use the formula:
time = distance / speed
Plugging in the values, we get:
time = 1060.4 / 346.52
≈ 3.06 seconds
Therefore, it will take approximately 3.06 seconds for the echo to return to you when you yell into the canyon.