Suono

Suono is the propagating mechanical wave produced by vibrating objects and transmitted through a medium as fluctuations of pressure and particle displacement. In fluids such as air and water sound is typically a longitudinal wave, where particles oscillate parallel to the direction of travel; in solids both longitudinal and transverse (shear) waves can occur. The speed of sound depends on the medium and its conditions (temperature, density, stiffness). For example, about 343 meters per second in air at 20°C, roughly 1,480 m/s in water, and several thousand meters per second in solids.

Sound is characterized by three main perceptual attributes: pitch, loudness, and timbre. Pitch relates to frequency, while loudness corresponds to amplitude or sound pressure level. Timbre distinguishes sounds with the same pitch and loudness but different spectral content. The typical human audible range spans roughly 20 Hz to 20 kHz, with sensitivity diminishing with age. Loudness is commonly measured in decibels, using a reference sound pressure of 20 micropascals.

Perception relies on the auditory system, where the outer ear collects sound, the middle ear transduces vibrations, and the inner ear converts them into neural signals. Complex sounds arise from combinations of frequencies and amplitudes, leading to phenomena such as interference, diffraction, reflection, and absorption. The Doppler effect describes frequency shifts due to relative motion between source and observer.

Applications span acoustics, music, speech communication, and technology, including microphones, loudspeakers, headphones, architectural acoustics, sonar, and medical ultrasonography. The study of sound also encompasses analysis methods such as Fourier transforms and digital signal processing, which help describe, reproduce, and manipulate acoustic signals. The term suono derives from Latin sonus and is used in Italian to denote sound in general.