* Sound waves are created by vibrations. When something vibrates, it causes the air molecules around it to vibrate as well.
* These vibrations create areas of high and low pressure. As the vibrating molecules push against their neighbors, they create areas of higher pressure (compressions). When they move away, they create areas of lower pressure (rarefactions).
* These pressure variations travel through the air. The compressions and rarefactions don't travel as individual molecules, but rather as a wave of pressure changes.
* The air molecules themselves don't travel far. They simply vibrate back and forth in a small space, transferring energy from one to the next.
Think of it like a slinky: if you push one end of the slinky, the compression travels down the slinky, but the individual coils don't move very far. They just oscillate back and forth.
This longitudinal motion is what allows sound to travel through the air and reach our ears.
