If the speed of a wave decreases but the wavelength remains constant, what happens to the frequency of the wave?
According to the wave equation c = fλ, where c is the speed of the wave, f is the frequency, and λ is the wavelength, if the speed of the wave decreases but the wavelength remains constant, the frequency of the wave must also decrease in order to maintain the equation. Therefore, the frequency of the wave decreases.
If the speed of a wave decreases while the wavelength remains constant, the frequency of the wave will also decrease. This is because the frequency of a wave is inversely proportional to its wavelength.
The equation that relates the speed, wavelength, and frequency of a wave is:
v = λf
where:
v = speed of the wave
λ = wavelength of the wave
f = frequency of the wave
Since the wavelength is constant, if the speed decreases, the frequency must decrease in order to maintain the equality in the equation.