AQA · Physics · 8463
GCSE Physics: Paper 2 specimen (PDF)
From the AQA GCSE Physics specimen paper — each card deep-links to the exact page in the PDF.
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What name is given to the effect where light from galaxies moving away from Earth has longer wavelengths than expected?
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Red shift (or Doppler shift)
What relationship exists between the speed of a galaxy and its distance from Earth, according to Hubble's observations?
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The speed of a galaxy is directly proportional to its distance from Earth (the further away, the faster it moves).
Why is iron a suitable material for the core of a transformer?
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It is easily magnetised.
How can you tell that a transformer is a step-down transformer by looking at voltage data?
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The secondary (output) voltage is lower than the primary (input) voltage.
Why is light refracted as it crosses from air into glass?
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The speed of light changes (decreases) as it enters the glass.
What is the difference between distance and displacement?
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Distance is the total length of path travelled; displacement is the straight-line distance from start to finish in a particular direction.
What is meant by the braking distance of a vehicle?
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The distance travelled by the vehicle from when the brakes are applied until the vehicle stops.
Why does the stopping distance of a car increase if the driver is very tired?
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The thinking distance increases because the driver's reaction time is slower when tired.
How many nanoseconds are in one second?
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1 × 10⁹ nanoseconds (or 1 billion nanoseconds). One nanosecond = 1 × 10⁻⁹ seconds.
How can a train accelerate without changing speed?
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By changing direction. Acceleration is a change in velocity, which includes changes in direction even if speed stays constant.
Why is it important to pull a friction-testing sled at constant speed?
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If the sled accelerates, the value for the constant of friction will be wrong.
Why would pulling a friction sled at an angle to the surface give an inappropriate value for the constant of friction?
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Pulling at an angle changes the normal contact force between the sled and the surface, which affects the friction force measured.
Why does atmospheric pressure decrease with increasing altitude?
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At higher altitudes, there is less air (less atmosphere) above that point, so the weight of the air column is smaller.
Describe one piece of evidence that shows a sound wave travels through air, not the air itself.
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You can hear sound from a source far away without feeling a wind or air movement from that source reaching you.
Describe the difference between a longitudinal wave and a transverse wave.
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In a transverse wave, oscillations are perpendicular to the direction of energy transfer. In a longitudinal wave, oscillations are parallel to the direction of energy transfer.
What is the name of the effect that causes a current-carrying wire in a magnetic field to experience a force?
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The motor effect.
Why is an aircraft window designed with a thicker, curved cross-section rather than a flat, uniform thickness?
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The curved shape distributes the stress from the pressure difference more evenly, preventing cracks and structural failure.
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