Ride the Wave: Top 11 Fascinating and Fun Facts About Waves You Can't Miss!

1. Tsunami vs. Jet Plane Race

Next time you find yourself in a race against a tsunami, remember: it's not all about the tortoise and the hare, sometimes it's about the jet plane and the wave: Tsunamis, which are triggered by underwater earthquakes or volcanic eruptions, can speed through deep waters at the pace of a jet plane, only putting on the brakes as they approach shallow shores, transforming into colossal sea level increases that can stretch far inland.
Source => oceanservice.noaa.gov

2. Poseidon's Alaskan Sneezesub

When Poseidon sneezed and created a mammoth splash in the good ol' Alaskan neighborhood: the tallest tsunami ever documented occurred in 1958 at Lituya Bay, Alaska, reaching a staggering height of 100 feet and—luckily for locals—causing minimal property damage in a sparsely populated area.
Source => smithsonianmag.com

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=> Fun Facts about Gold

3. Black Hole Smash-ups

Just when you thought the aftermath of a breakup was dramatic, brace yourself for a cosmic collision of another kind: Gravitational waves resulting from the smash-up of black holes can be explored via computer simulations, shedding light on the non-linear ripples and testing general relativity's validity in the realm of black holes. These virtual encounters even unveil never-before-seen waves frequencies, finally providing supporting evidence for Einstein's 1915 prediction made in his pajamas while sipping on hot cocoa – a full century before their actual detection.
Source => space.com

4. Sound Waves: LinkedIn All-stars

If sound waves had a LinkedIn profile, they'd definitely flaunt their adaptability in various work environments: Surprisingly, sound waves don't always travel faster through solid objects than through air or water, because their speed is determined by the medium's elastic properties and density, allowing them to occasionally zip faster through liquids and gases with higher elasticity and lower densities, like helium gas.
Source => nde-ed.org

5. Underwater Landslide Tango

Mother Nature's underwater dance moves: Tsunamis can be caused by earthquakes and, believe it or not, underwater landslides too, with the latter being particularly destructive, such as the Lituya Bay rock avalanche in 1958, which triggered a gargantuan wave reaching a height of 524 meters and causing fatalities.
Source => usgs.gov

6. Rainbow Treasure Hunt

Whoever said, "you can never find gold at the end of the rainbow" clearly didn't know what they were talking about – or they were sneakily guarding the secret of treasures hidden within the colors of these ethereal arches: Rainbows are actually formed by sunlight refracting and scattering inside water droplets, which separates light into the full spectrum of visible colors – red being longest wavelengths at the top and violet, the shortest, at the bottom – all coming together to form a stunning sky-bound exhibition that demands we pause and marvel in awe.
Source => scied.ucar.edu

7. Shortwave Radio Superhero

When ships and planes face a communications pickle, who do they call? That's right, the shortwave radio maestro! Strumming its signals across the globe with a flair for bouncing beats off the ionosphere: Shortwave radios have the largest skip distance zones and can transmit to virtually any location on Earth, making them perfect for broadcasting music, voice, and even emergency signals, with just the right touch of educational vibes.
Source => comms-spec.com

8. Ocean Temperature Drama

What did the west tropical Pacific Ocean say to the east tropical Pacific Ocean during winter? "You're getting on my nerves!" Hilarious prelude: Turns out, when the ocean temperatures play the game of extreme hot and cold, it can wreak havoc up in the atmosphere: Serious reveal: These strong changes in ocean temperature cause heat domes that lead to scorching heat waves on the surface, all thanks to warm air rising in the west and traveling east to get trapped under high-pressure dome parties.
Source => oceanservice.noaa.gov

9. Sound Wave Musical Chairs

When sound waves play musical chairs with each other, they either team up for a powerhouse performance or bicker like siblings, canceling each other out: This phenomenon, known as constructive or destructive interference, occurs when sound waves from different sources either strengthen or weaken each other, and it's something theater designers pay close attention to, ensuring everyone in the audience gets an earful of pure, unadulterated sound.
Source => nde-ed.org

10. X-ray Photo Session

Say cheese and snap a photo with your trusty old x-ray camera! Your insides will surely appreciate the attention: X-rays have different energy levels and wavelengths that enable them to pass through various materials, capturing detailed images of our organs and bones, perfect for unveiling hidden fractures, uninvited tumors, and other mysterious bodily abnormalities.
Source => nibib.nih.gov

11. Wavelength Confusion Game

Forget X-ray vision, we've got wavelength confusion: The transparency and opacity of objects can differ among electromagnetic waves, meaning something that appears transparent to visible light may not be so for radio waves or microwaves, as their interactions with materials can cause surface atom vibrations to be absorbed, transmitted, or reflected.
Source => study.com