Question

why does sound travel fastest in solids and slowest in air​

Answer 1

Answer:

Because the molecules of matter in a gas are spaced far apart, sound moves slowest through a gas. Sound travels faster in liquids than in gases because molecules are packed more closely together. Sound travels fastest through solids. This is because molecules in a solid are packed against each other.

Answer 2

Sound requires medium to travel. It travels faster in solids than in liquids or gas (air).

Explanation:

• Speed of sound depends upon the properties of the medium it is passing through.

• Compression and rarefaction of a sound wave move about only when molecules collide with each other.

Compression is a region of sound where particles are closest together and rarefaction is the region of sound wave where particles are furthest apart.

• So, it makes sense that the speed of sound has the same order of magnitude as the average molecular speed between collisions.

• Since, solids have closely packed molecules, so the interaction is more as compared to air which has very loosely packed molecules.