Abstract The purpose of this lab was to determine the speed of sound in air by determining the wavelength of resonant sound waves in an air column of varying length. In this lab sound waves were be generated by striking a series of vibrating tuning forks. When a tuning fork is set into vibration, it’s waves consisting of alternate compressions and rarefactions in air is sent down the tube. We had to determine three effective lengths of the tube at which the resonance occurs for each of the three tuning forks. We then determined the wavelength of the wave for each tuning fork from the effective length of the resonance tube. We will compare the measured speed of sound with the accepted value.Our hypothesis being that the larger the frequency of the tuning fork, the lesser distance of the sound at its highest point.IntroductionThe speed of sound refers to how fast a pressure disturbance occurs from one particle to another particle. In order for sound to travel from one particle to the other there must be a medium. A medium is the substance that transports a wave from one place to another. Once one particle is pushed by a vibration it causes a permeation effect to the next particle and so on. The speed of sound is related to the frequency and wavelength of a sound wave through the general relation, Speed of Sound= Frequency x Wavelength, where they are usually determined by using the acoustic resonances of a cylindrical tube. There are two variables that can affect the speed of sound, temperature and humidity. The higher the temperature the faster the sound travels while the higher the humidity in the air the slower the sound travels.ProcedureTo begin the temperature of the room was recorded as well as the radius of the plastic tube. With the column tube full of water, one person struck the tuning fork on the heel of their hand, then held the tuning fork near the top of the tube approximately two centimeters from theopening of the tube, with the tines of the fork perpendicular to the axis of the tube. Another person listened near the edge of the tube for a sudden increase of sound intensity as the water level in the tube in lowered. The listener then recorded this point as d1 and marked it as a starting point to be subtracted later. The water level was lowered until another sound increase was detected, and this point was recorded as d2, and once again the water level was lowered untilthe another sound increase was detected, and this point was recorded as d3. This process was repeated with three different tuning