Visualizing Dubstep with a Tube of Fire

Watch Anthony and Tara get down with dancing flames after they make their own Rubens' Tube.

Standing Waves and Resonance

Standing Waves can resonate in a pipe. The resonance occurs in an open-closed pipe when an odd integer number of quarter wavelengths fit exactly in the length of the cavity of the pipe. This animation illustrates what happens when a plunger is used to "scan" the effective length of a pipe driven by a tuning fork. Three different cases are shown for a set of increasing frequencies.
 

Standing Waves and Harmonics

The harmonic frequencies of a system depend upon the geometry of that system. This animation shows the first five harmonics for both a pipe closed at both ends as well as a pipe open at one end. The animation ends with a wave which is actually comprised of a combination of those first five harmonics for each system.

 

Standing Waves Generator - Vernier

Relationship between Frequency and Wavelength in a Standing Wave.

 

Science off the Sphere: Space Soundwaves II- Electric Didgeridoo

In his off-duty time, NASA Astronaut Don Pettit likes to explore scientific curiosities of his own design. Sometimes that means cutting his shirt up and playing the space station vacuum cleaner like a didgeridoo.

Other Science off the Sphere videos

Sound + Fire = Rubens' Tube

Sound waves in a tube of gas create flames of different heights that dance to the music. A metal tube with holes in it is filled with gas. The gas is lit to create a row of tiny flames. A speaker at one end plays sound into the tube, which creates a standing wave of sound: areas where air molecules are vibrating rapidly separated by areas where the air is fairly still. This produces the different heights of flames and allows the wavelength of the sound wave to be estimated.

Another Rubens' Tube demonstration

Other Veritasium videos

Chladni's Plate - Sixty Symbols

We showed Chladni's plates before, but this video has explanations too...

Other Sixty Symbols videos

Fourier Analysis (and guitar jammin') - Sixty Symbols

A physics professor uses an electric guitar (and wah pedal!) to explain the workings of waves.

Other Sixty Symbols videos

Physics of the trumpet 1

Resonance, standing waves in a string with both ends fixed, penny whistle.

With Nick Drozdoff.

Other videos in this series

Bell Labs Wave Machine: Standing Waves (MIT physics demo)

Standing waves are created on the Bell Labs apparatus. The apparatus is "open" at both ends, therefore the number of nodes is equal to the number of overtones. For example, the fourth harmonic will have four nodes, the fifth harmonic will have five nodes, etc.

Source:  MIT TechTV

See other MIT physics demos

1D Standing Wave Patterns

This animation shows an assortment of standing wave patterns under varied boundary conditions.

Other animations by Penn State Schuylkill

Mach Cone

Cone-shaped shock wave generated by a supersonic plane.

Ruben's Tube

Classic physics experiment involving sound, a tube of propane and fire. He begins with sound at 449 Hz, then higher frequencies, then some jazz and then some rock.

Standing waves in a large tank

Standing waves in a large tank at the United States Naval Academy.

Standing Wave

Interference between two waves traveling in opposite directions (green and cyan) in a string whose ends are both fixed produce a standing wave (yellow). This is the fourth mode of vibration, with 2 wavelength across the string.

Other animations by Yves Pelletier

Chladni Plate (sand vibration patterns)