GEOLOGY

EARTH SCIENCE

SEISMOLOGY

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
What type of wave are primary waves?
A
Tensional
B
Compressional
C
Transversal
D
Shear
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -…can travel through a body: P waves (primary) and S waves (secondary). P waves are compressional waves and travel at the highest velocity; hence, they arrive first.

Detailed explanation-2: -The P wave, or primary wave, is the fastest of the three waves and the first detected by seismographs. They are able to move through both liquid and solid rock. P waves, like sound waves, are compressional waves, which means that they compress and expand matter as they move through it.

Detailed explanation-3: -Mechanical longitudinal waves are also called compressional or compression waves, because they produce compression and rarefaction when traveling through a medium, and pressure waves, because they produce increases and decreases in pressure.

Detailed explanation-4: -Primary waves, also known as P waves or pressure waves, are longitudinal compression waves similar to the motion of a slinky (SF Fig. 7.1 A).

Detailed explanation-5: -P waves, or Primary waves, are the first waves to arrive at a seismograph. P waves are the fastest seismic waves and can move through solid, liquid, or gas. They leave behind a trail of compressions and rarefactions on the medium they move through. P waves are also called pressure waves for this reason.

There is 1 question to complete.