2005 HS Photo Contest Pictures
2005 High School Photo Contest Winners
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Honorable Mention
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Natural Category
When raindrops hit a body of water, a beautiful lasting effect occurs. Each raindrop hits the water and a point source is created. A plethora of concentric circles, or wave fronts, radiate outward from this point. This disturbance produces transverse waves, which can be observed in this photograph. The crests of these waves can be seen because the particles of the waves move perpendicular to the direction of propagation. As two wave fronts collide, two types of interference occur. Constructive interference is the most visible to the eye; two waves that are in phase with each other collide to form a larger wave. Destructive interference occurs when two wave fronts collide and the water becomes calm. When two out-of-phase wave fronts collide, the trough of one wave meets the crest of the other wave, and the two waves cancel each other out.
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