Question

A physicist at a fireworks display times the lag between seeing an explosion and hearing its sound, and finds it to be (0.400 s). (a) How far away is the explosion if air temperature is (24.0ºC) and if you neglect the time taken for light to reach the physicist?

a) (160 m)
b) (170 m)
c) (180 m)
d) (190 m)

Answer 1

The distance to the explosion, neglecting the time taken for light to reach the physicist, is approximately 137.2 meters.

Step-by-step explanation:

In order to calculate the distance to the explosion, we can use the speed of sound. The speed of sound in air is approximately 343 m/s. Since sound travels at a speed of 343 m/s, we can multiply the speed by the time interval of 0.400 s to find the distance.

Distance = Speed x Time = 343 m/s x 0.4 s = 137.2 m.

Therefore, the distance to the explosion, neglecting the time taken for light to reach the physicist, is approximately 137.2 meters.