Mechanical wave
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- Please see the article wave for more information.
A mechanical wave is a wave that needs a medium through which to transmit energy. Sound waves, waves in a Slinky, and pressure waves are all examples of this. Sound waves need air molecules in order to exist; the Slinky waves need the Slinky, and the waves in the ocean need the water.
It follows, then, that mechanical waves cannot exist in a vacuum. This is the factor that distinguishes them from electromagnetic waves.
Mechanical waves are a local oscillation of material. Only the energy propagates; the oscillating material does not move far from its initial equilibrium position. Therefore, mechanical waves transport energy and not material.