How to Calculate Time Delay for Sound?

Calculating the time delay for sound is a simple yet important concept in physics. It helps us understand how sound travels through different mediums and how our perception of events can be influenced by the speed of sound.

The formula to calculate the time delay for sound is:

time = distance / speed

Where:

time is the time delay in seconds,

distance is the distance between the sound source and the observer in meters, and

speed is the speed of sound in meters per second.

Let's take an example to understand this concept better. If the speed of sound is 330 m/s and fireworks are 1.5 km away from the observer, we can calculate the time delay as follows:

Firstly, we need to convert the distance from kilometers to meters: 1.5 km = 1500 m.

Using the formula, time = distance / speed, we can substitute the values: time = 1500 m / 330 m/s = 4.55 seconds.

Therefore, the length of the time delay between seeing the fireworks explode and hearing the sound is approximately 4.55 seconds.