Motion in a circle — AS & A Level Physics (9702) questions by topic
With only 7 real questions from 2023 to 2025 papers, this A Level Physics topic is compact but heavily weighted, from 1 to 13 marks: a golf ball's parabolic velocity components, the radian's definition, and a steel sphere swinging on a spring through horizontal circles.
Calculate, explain and deduce lead the command words, with state and draw also common: deduce the radius of a circular path from basic trigonometry, then apply circular-motion equations to find a force. Submitting each attempt for instant marking catches tension resolved into the wrong components, or centripetal force wrongly treated as a third force rather than a resultant, before it happens twice.
What examiners look for
- Examiners repeatedly find candidates fail to resolve the components of tension correctly, often referring to components of weight instead, or treating centripetal force as a separate third force rather than the resultant of tension and weight.
- A recurring criticism is not showing working clearly enough, with a numerical weight value appearing without evidence it came from mass times gravitational field strength.
- A common mistake is applying k = F/e incorrectly, or not using the extra extension and extra force values that the question actually provides.
- Strong answers use basic trigonometry to show the circle's radius, then apply circular motion equations correctly once forces are resolved.
May–June 2025, Paper 42
May–June 2024, Paper 11
The diagram shows the path of a golf ball, which follows a parabolic trajectory rising from and returning to the ground. Which row describes changes in the horizontal and vertical…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 42
October–November 2024, Paper 42
A metal wheel consists of an axle A, eight spokes and a rim, as shown in Fig. 1.1. Point X is on the rim at the end of one of the spokes. The rim has a radius of 0.85 m. The wheel…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 41
A steel sphere of mass 0.29 kg is suspended in equilibrium from a vertical spring. The centre of the sphere is 8.5 cm from the top of the spring, as shown in Fig. 2.1. The sphere…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 43
A steel sphere of mass 0.29 kg is suspended in equilibrium from a vertical spring. The centre of the sphere is 8.5 cm from the top of the spring, as shown in Fig. 2.1. The sphere…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2023, Paper 42
Other AS & A Level Physics topics
- Forces, density and pressure (120)
- Waves (89)
- Practical skills (86)
- Superposition (77)
- D.C. circuits (71)
- Work, energy and power (70)
- Deformation of solids (60)
- Physical quantities and units (54)
- Current of electricity (50)
- Particle physics (46)
- Kinematics (45)
- Nuclear physics (37)