standing wave

A standing wave is a pattern that appears to stay in one place on a vibrating medium, like a string or air column. It occurs when waves traveling in opposite directions interfere and create points that remain still, called nodes, and points of maximum movement called antinodes. This pattern doesn’t move along the medium, even though the waves that form it are moving. Standing waves are common in musical instruments (like guitar strings) and are important in understanding sound, light, and other wave-based phenomena.