Question

A sound wave travels through iron at a rate of 5120 m/s. At what rate does the sound wave travel in km/h

Answer 1

When converting a number with meters per second to a value with kilometers per second they best way to perform this operation is by using dimensional analysis or the factor label method. You would set up the equation starting with 5120 m/s times 1 km / 1000 m times 3600 s / 1 hr. It would look like this: (5120 m/ 1 s) x (1 km / 1000 m) x (3600 s / 1 hr) Your next step would be multiplying all the top numbers (numerators) together 5120 x 1 x 3600 = 18,432,000 Now multiple on the bottom numbers (denominators) together 1 x 1000 x 1 = 1000 Now you can divide the top product by the bottom product. 18,432,000 / 1000 = 18,432 km/hr is your final answer.