The wave pattern on a stretched string is shown in Fig. 15.2. Interpret what kind of wave this is and find its wavelength.

The given wave is a standing wave. From the given figure we can see that it is transverse wave as it vibrates at right angle to its direction of propagation. Also from the graph the equation of the wave can be determined as

and

where ω is the angular frequency and T is the time period. The given wave has nodes at displacements of 10, 20, 30, 50 units of displacement. The distance between two successive nodes is equal to half the wavelength, therefore