If the molecules are further apart and less tightly bonded then it is harder for the sound to travel and as a result the sound travels slower. If the molecules are closer together then the sound can travel between them more easily and quickly. Sound is kinetic energy that is vibrating through molecules. So, why does sound travel at different speeds depending on the material? What is sound?įirst of all, we need to know what sound actually is to understand how it moves. The tables above display the speed of sound in liquid, gas and solid materials ranking from slowest to fastest.Īs you can see, there is a huge difference in how fast speed travels depending on the material, from 343 m/s through air to 1,493 m/s through water up to 12,000 m/s through diamond. So, how fast does sound travel through different materials? Let’s take a look! Gases Material Speed (m/s)ĩ72 m/s Hydrogen 1,286 m/s Liquids Material Speed (m/s) Mercury 1,450 m/s This is a very broad summary as it’s not only the type of material that makes a difference to the speed the sound is moving at the density, elastic property and even the temperature can have an impact too. The speed that sound travels largely depends on the material type.įor example, sound waves travel fastest when they are moving through solids and tend to travel a lot slower when moving through gases and liquids.
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