The maximum displacement formed by a transverse wave in the upward direction is known as a crest, whereas the maximum displacement formed by a transverse wave in the downward direction is known as a trough. In other words, the particle motion and the wave motion of a transverse wave are aligned perpendicular to each other. This implies that the particles of the medium vibrate up and down. Transverse WavesĪ mechanical wave is said to be transverse if the particles of the medium tend to oscillate in a direction perpendicular to the direction of propagation of the wave. The propagation of the wave is close to the surface of the earth, hence it is known as the ground wave propagation.Depending on the direction of wave propagation, mechanical waves can be classified into two broad categories, namely, transverse waves and longitudinal waves. This is observed when an electromagnetic wave such as a radio wave is made to propagate along the surface of the earth for the purpose of communication and exchange of information between two points. Some of the electromagnetic waves also act like surface waves. The wind flowing on the surface of the ocean or the sea in the direction opposite to the flow of the water produces huge surface waves. The large surfing waves formed on the surface of an ocean or a sea are highly influenced by the winds. The wind is also responsible to generate or form surface waves. The best example of gravity waves is the waves formed in the seas or oceans. The gravity waves also occur within liquids and on the surface of fluids. They help to hold the objects in place, and they are also responsible for the fall of the objects towards the ground. The gravity waves influence a lot of objects present on the earth’s surface. The seismic waves can be recorded on a seismograph with the help of a seismometer. The seismic waves are a prominent example of surface waves as they exist on the surface of the earth and not inside the earth’s core. Seismic waves are the waves produced due to the movement of the tectonic plates of the earth or simply because of the earthquake. In such cases, the propagation of the wave is easy to observe. The disturbance introduced on the still water surface travels from one point to another. These ripples formed on the water surface are known as the water waves. When a person throws a heavy object such as a stone in the water, or when a person dives into a water body, ripples get formed on the water surface. These type of waves exert a huge amount of pressure on the objects present on the surface of the earth such as tall buildings, thereby damaging the foundation of the structure. Love, a British mathematician, are the surface waves that tend to move the particles of the medium along a horizontal plane in a direction perpendicular to the direction of propagation of the wave. He was the first person who mathematically demonstrated the existence of rayleigh waves. Rayleigh waves are named after the British physicist Lord Rayleigh. These waves are quite slower than the body waves. Rayleigh waves are the surface waves that tend to move the particles of the medium in both horizontal and vertical direction along the vertical plane.
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