Question

A boat sends a very quick blip out of its SONAR system and listens for its echo. After 3 seconds, an echo is heard. How far away is the detected object? (Water v = 1500 m/s)

A) 1500 m
B) 2250 m
C) 4500 m
D) 3000 m

Answer 1

The distance to the object detected by the SONAR system is 2250 m, calculated using the round-trip time of the SONAR echo and the known speed of sound in water.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question pertains to finding the distance to an object using a SONAR system. The time taken for the SONAR echo to return to the boat is given as 3 seconds. Given that the speed of sound in water is 1500 m/s, we can calculate the total distance traveled by the sound (to the object and back to the boat) using the formula distance = speed × time. The distance to the object would then be half of this total distance because the sound wave has to travel to the object and then back to the boat.

Using the provided data:
Total distance traveled by the sound wave = 1500 m/s × 3 s = 4500 m
So the distance to the detected object = Total distance / 2 = 4500 m / 2 = 2250 m

The correct answer is therefore B) 2250 m.