shock wave

plural shock waves · alternative shockwave

1. natural sciencesA powerful compression wave produced by the movement of a body through a fluid or gas at a velocity greater than the local speed of sound.
2. figurativelyAny violent disturbance.

   To lose against Liverpool is a painful business at any time but to be on the receiving end of what was a record defeat in this fixture will send shock waves through Old Trafford.

   2023 March 5, Phil McNulty, “Liverpool 7-0 Manchester United”, in BBC Sport

   1 more example

   As we have seen, economic earthquakes often result in political shockwaves. […] He highlights a correlation between those states with the highest robot density and those states that unexpectedly swung behind Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election, namely Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

   2019 July 11, John Thornhill, “Does tech threaten to rerun the worst of the Industrial Revolution?”, in Financial Times