November 2025 Daily Physics questions
Free AS and A2 Daily MCQs from PhysicsUK. Questions appear here after a 7-day delay so pupils can practise with the answer and explanation available.
Mechanics & Materials (M3)
In a school lab, a student films a ball dropped vertically from rest. From 5.0 m the impact speed is measured to be about 9.9 m s^-1. Taking g = 9.81 m s^-2 and ignoring air resistance, what impact speed should be...
Thermal physics: ideal gases (M5.1)
An unopened rigid aerosol can contains gas at 27°C. After being left in the sun, its temperature rises to 127°C. Assuming the gas behaves ideally and the can’s volume is unchanged, what is the new pressure relative to...
Mechanics (M3): Forces in action — moments and equilibrium
Which statement must be true when a uniform 3.0 m plank (mass 20 kg) is held level by two vertical spring scales at its ends, and a 10 kg toolbox initially 1.0 m from the left end is slid 0.50 m toward the right end?...
Mechanics & Materials (M3)
A skydiver has been falling for long enough that her speed has become constant. Which statement must be true at this moment?
High level GCSE physics — kinematics (velocity–time graphs)
A lab trolley moves in a straight line. Its velocity changes uniformly from +4.0 m/s at t = 0.0 s to −2.0 m/s at t = 3.0 s. Take forward as positive. Which statement must be true about its position relative to the...
Simple harmonic motion (SHM)
A glider attached to a horizontal spring oscillates on an air track with negligible friction. In a second run, the glider is pulled to twice the initial amplitude (from 3.0 cm to 6.0 cm) and released from rest, with...
Archimedes’ principle (M3)
In a lab, a metal object is hung from a spring balance. In air the balance reads 49 N. When the object is fully submerged in water, the reading falls to 39 N. Take the density of water as 1000 kg m−3 and g = 9.8 N...
Mechanics & Materials (M3)
Which statement must be true when a skydiver falling belly-to-earth (parachute not yet deployed) has just reached terminal velocity?
Archimedes’ principle (M3)
An irregular metal ornament is hung from a newton meter. The reading is 6.0 N in air. When fully immersed in fresh water the reading is 5.3 N, and when fully immersed in a different liquid the reading is 5.0 N. Which...
Kinematics (velocity–time graphs, acceleration)
A lab trolley starts from rest and its velocity–time graph is a straight line through the origin with a constant positive gradient. Which statement must be true?
Gravitational fields (M5)
Two airless spherical planets are otherwise similar. Planet X has mass M and radius R. Planet Y has mass 2M and radius 2R. A small probe starts from rest very far away (where gravitational potential is taken as zero)...
Mechanics & Materials (M3)
A commuter train applies the same constant braking each time it approaches a platform. One day it begins braking at speed v and stops after distance s. On another day it begins braking at double the speed 2v, with the...
Kinematics (M3)
In a simple drop-test rig, a steel ball is released from rest from 0.80 m and the speed just before impact is about 4.0 m/s (consistent with taking g = 9.81 m/s^2 and negligible air resistance). The team wants to...
Forces and Motion (M3) — Kinematics
In a flat-ground cycling drill, two students cover a 10 s interval. Student A starts from rest and increases speed uniformly for the first 4.0 s, then keeps that speed constant for the remaining 6.0 s. Student B starts...
Forces and Motion (M3) — Kinematics: linear motion under gravity
From a balcony 15 m above the ground, ball P is released from rest. Half a second later, ball Q is thrown straight down from the same point so that both balls land at the same time. Neglect air resistance and take g =...
Dynamics: terminal velocity (M3)
A skydiver of fixed mass changes posture from spread-eagle to head-first, halving their frontal area. In this speed range, the resistive force of the air is proportional to the square of speed and to frontal area. How...
Kinematics — velocity–time graphs and acceleration (M3)
In a lab, a trolley starts from rest and its velocity–time graph is a straight line while a small fan pushes it. It reaches 3.0 m/s in 4.0 s. The fan speed is then reduced so that the straight-line gradient of the...
Kinematics (M3)
A student throws a ball straight up and later catches it at the same height. Air resistance is negligible and take g = 9.81 m s−2 downward. Which statement must be true about the ball’s acceleration while it is in the...
Gravitational fields (M5)
An Earth‑observation satellite is moved from a circular orbit of radius r (measured from Earth’s centre) to a new circular orbit of radius 2r, with both orbits otherwise stable. Neglect air resistance. Which statement...
Forces and Motion (M3): Kinematics
In a lab trolley experiment, the trolley starts from rest and moves with constant acceleration a for time t. In a second run you double the acceleration to 2a and let it run for twice the time, 2t. Using a...
High level GCSE physics
Two identical low-friction carts start from rest on a straight track. Cart X is pulled with a constant horizontal force for twice as long as cart Y is pulled with twice that force. The pulls stop at those moments....
DC Circuits (M4)
A student makes a light sensor using a 6.0 V battery, a 1.0 kΩ fixed resistor, and an LDR in series. The output voltage V_out is measured across the LDR, with the positive terminal taken at the end nearest the...
Circular motion: centripetal acceleration (Module 5.2)
On a wet test track, a car drives a steady circular path of fixed radius. On a second run it keeps the same path but increases its speed by 50%. For the car’s acceleration directed towards the centre, what is the...
Forces and Motion (M3): Kinematics
Two runners move straight along a track for a total time 2t. Runner A starts from rest, accelerates uniformly to speed v during the first t seconds, then continues at speed v for the next t seconds. Runner B runs at a...
Thermal physics I: internal energy; specific heat; energy changes; heating curves (qual.)
In a lab test, equal masses of copper and aluminium start at the same temperature. Each block is heated by an identical constant‑power heater for the same time in good insulation. The copper block’s temperature...
Mechanics & Materials (M3)
A trolley jack lifts a car of weight 2000 N by 0.40 m. The user does 1200 J of work on the handle. What is the efficiency of the lift?
Kinematics (M3.1) — displacement–time graphs
A delivery robot moves along a straight corridor. Its displacement–time graph is a straight line from 0 m at t = 0 s to +5 m at t = 10 s, then a straight line to −1 m at t = 20 s (it passes the origin and ends 1 m on...
Foundations of Physics (M2)
Two identical satellites orbit the same planet. Satellite A moves on a circular orbit of radius R. Satellite B follows an ellipse with closest distance R and farthest distance 4R. Assume only the planet’s gravity acts....
Materials: springs in series/parallel; energy in a spring (M3.4)
A 12 N load is hung from identical light springs in three configurations: (i) a single spring; (ii) two identical springs in series; (iii) two identical springs in parallel. All extensions remain in the linear region....
Thermal physics I: internal energy; specific heat; energy changes; heating curves (qual.)
Two identical insulated beakers are each heated by the same 100 W immersion heater for 60 s, with stirring. Beaker X contains 0.10 kg of ice at −5°C. Beaker Y contains 0.10 kg of liquid water at +5°C. Which statement...
Mechanics & Materials (M3)
On level ground, a student fires a foam dart at 40° to the horizontal. Air resistance is negligible, and the dart lands at the same height it was launched. If the launch speed is doubled while keeping the angle the...
Materials — Springs in series/parallel (Module 3.4)
In a lab, a 2.0 N weight stretches one light spring by 8.0 cm. The same weight is then hung from two identical springs arranged in parallel (both attached to the support and to the weight). What is the new extension of...
Kinematics (M3): linear motion under gravity
From a balcony 20 m above level ground, two identical steel balls are released at the same instant. Ball A is thrown straight down at 5.0 m s^-1; Ball B is thrown straight up at 5.0 m s^-1. Air resistance is negligible...
Kinetic theory model
Two identical rigid 1.0 L steel flasks are stored side by side in a lab. One contains pure helium and the other contains pure oxygen. Both are at the same pressure and the same room temperature. Ignore non-ideal...
Kinematics (Module 3.1.1): velocity–time graphs; acceleration
Two e-scooters A and B start from rest at the same place and move in the same straight line. For 0–10 s, their velocity–time graphs are straight-line segments: A increases uniformly from 0 to 6 m/s by t = 6 s, then...