Why is a myelinated axon so much faster? The signal doesn't crawl along every inch — it leaps from node to node, skipping the insulated stretches. Watch two signals race.
Two axons, one signal each
Conduction speedmyelin makes it leap
Two ways to conductOn the unmyelinated axon (top), the signal must regenerate at every point — slow. On the myelinated axon (bottom), it only regenerates at the bare nodes of Ranvier, jumping the myelinated gaps. This is saltatory conduction — faster and more energy-efficient.
📷 Reference image
A real labeled figure to compare with the interactive above.
Saltatory Conduction — OpenStax, CC BY 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)
