QQuestion
Two persons A and B are standing in front of a cliff in the same line, 170 m apart, as shown in the diagram.

Person B fires a gun and hears the echo in 3 s. Then person A, standing in front of B, fires the gun. (Speed of sound in air = 340 m s−1)
(a) Calculate: (1) the distance of B from the cliff; (2) the minimum time in which B hears the gunshot fired by A.
(b) Fill in the blank: The echo is softer than the original sound due to the decrease in …………… [amplitude / frequency] of the wave.
Exam-ready answer • 04 Mark
✓Answer
Given
- Distance between A and B = 170 m
- Time taken by the person B to hear the echo = 3 s
- Speed of sound in air = 340 ms-1
(a) (1) Distance of B from the cliff = \frac{340\times3}{2} = 510 m.
(a) (2) Minimum time = \frac{170}{340} = 0.5 s.
(b) The echo is softer (less loud) than the original sound due to the decrease in amplitude of the wave.
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