Refraction (sound) a downward bending of the sound rays towards the ground. The same holds if the temperature is decreasing with height. If the temperature is increasing with height (inversion) and the wind speed is low, sound rays are bend upwards. Refraction (sound) Refraction, in acoustics, comparable to the refraction of electromagnetic radiation, is the bending of sound propagation trajectories (rays) in inhomogeneous elastic media (gases, liquids, and solids) in which the wave velocity is a function of spatial coordinates. Bending of acoustic rays in layered inhomogeneous media occurs towards a layer with a smaller sound velocity. This effect is responsible for
Refraction medicine, particularly optometry, ophthalmology and orthoptics, "refraction" (also known as "refractometry") is a clinical test in which a phoropter may be used by the appropriate eye care professional to determine the eye's refractive error and the best corrective lenses to be prescribed. A series of test lenses in graded optical powers or focal lengths are presented to determine which provides the sharpest, clearest vision. In underwater acoustics, refraction is the bending or curving of a sound ray that results when the ray passes through a sound speed gradient from a region of one sound speed to a region of a