Sound + Fire = Rubens' Tube

Contributed By
Veritasium
Resource Type
Classroom Material
Subjects
Science
Audience
Classroom Teacher / Educator
Related Resources

Sound + Fire = Rubens' Tube

Sound waves in a tube of gas create flames of different heights that dance to the music. A metal tube with holes in it is filled with gas. The gas is lit to create a row of tiny flames. A speaker at one end plays sound into the tube, which creates a standing wave of sound: areas where air molecules are vibrating rapidly separated by areas where the air is fairly still. This produces the different heights of flames and allows the wavelength of the sound wave to be estimated.

Author
Dr. Derek Muller
Publisher
Veritasium

Unfortunately, we were unable to load the necessary assets to access this site.
Try reloading the page to verify your network is still working.

If the problem persists, please verify that https://cdn.caeducatorstogether.org/ is not blocked by your network firewall. You may need to reach out to your agency's Network/IT support staff to get access.

For any questions or further assistance please contact us at caetsupport@kern.org