However, there is no set speed of sound. Like the speed of light, the maximum velocity of sound waves depends on a variety of external factors, including the temperature and pressure of the air.

A quiet revolution is taking shape in the world of physics, and it doesn’t rely on exotic particles or massive particle colliders. Instead, it begins with something much more familiar—sound.

What we hear as sound is actually pressure waves traveling through a medium like air, and the speed of those waves depends on the medium’s density and composition (SN: 10/9/20).