Question

A wave is produced in a Slinky as shown.

An illustration of a horizontal spring with a hand holding the left end of the spring. Above the spring is labeled direction of wave travel with an arrow toward the right. In the spring are areas where the rings are closer together and areas where the rings are further apart. There is a point labeled P in an area where the rings are further apart.

What is the direction of the Slinky wire at Point P as the waves travel through this point?

A dot with a vector drawn right and a vector drawn left.
A dot vector drawn up and vector drawn down.
A dot with a vector drawn up to the right and a vector drawn down to the left.
A dot with a vector drawn up to the left and a vector drawn down to the right.

Answer 1

The first choice. In a longitudinal wave the coils oscillate parallel to the wave direction (left–right), so the motion at P is horizontal (right and left).