How is it useful?

Sound Energy

All sounds are vibrations traveling through the air as sound waves.

What is it?

How does it work?

Sound waves are caused by the vibrations of objects and radiate outward from their source in all directions.

Sound energy is typically not used for electrical power or for other human energy needs because the amount of energy that can be gained from sound is quite small. Sound waves with frequencies less than 20Hz are called "infrasonic" sound. Infrasonic sounds can be produced by earthquakes, volcanoes and avalanches. Therefore, scientists can monitor infrasound to learn more about these processes, and potentially provide early warnings just before a volcanic eruption. Another way that we use sound waves to learn about our surroundings is SONAR, which is used to map objects on the ocean floor.