Wavelength of colors

Scientists often draw sound waves as wavy lines, like these graphs. The distance between the peaks of the waves is called the wavelength. High–pitched sounds have short wavelengths , which means that the peaks are close together. Low–pitched sounds have longer wavelengths, so the peaks are more spread out.

If the frequency of a pitch is very high, its wavelength will be very short. As it happens, wavelength determines how far a sound wave can travel. Shorter wavelengths die out more quickly as the wave moves through the air . That is why you only hear the bass and drums when a band is playing at the far end of the park.

The shorter the wavelength, the higher the frequency, and the higher the pitch, of the sound . In other words, short waves sound high; long waves sound low.

The wavelength of the sound wave becomes longer as the car moves away. A longer wavelength means that not as many wave cycles can pass in a given time interval, so the frequency is lower, and thus the pitch of the sound is much lower .