Which of the following can cause damage to buildings?

Correct option is C

The correct answer is (c) Shock waves produced by supersonic aircraft.
· Shock waves are intense waves produced by supersonic aircraft when they travel faster than the speed of sound, causing a rapid compression of air. These waves create a phenomenon known as a sonic boom.
· Sonic booms generate large amounts of sound energy, approximately equal to an explosion or a thunderclap, which can cause structural damage to buildings, shattering windows, and even causing walls to crack under extreme conditions.
· The pressure variation caused by these shock waves can exert significant force on structures, making them a considerable threat to buildings in the vicinity of their occurrence.
Other Option Detail:
· Infrasound : These are sound waves with frequencies below the lower limit of human audibility (below 20 Hz). While they can cause discomfort and even health issues in humans and animals, they generally do not possess enough energy to cause physical damage to buildings.
· Sound at about 10 kHz : High-frequency sounds in the range of 10 kHz are within the audible range for humans. Such sounds typically do not have enough energy to cause structural damage to buildings.
· Subsonic sound: These are sound waves with frequencies below the speed of sound but above infrasound (20 Hz to 20 kHz). Similar to infrasound, they do not usually carry enough energy to damage buildings.