A.1 Kinematics
Practice exam-style IB Physics questions for Kinematics, aligned with the syllabus and grouped by topic.
Question 1
A cyclist travels due east at 6.0 m s⁻¹. What correctly classifies this quantity?
A.
A vector, because all quantities with negative values are vectors
B.
A vector, because it has a magnitude and direction
C.
A scalar, because speed and velocity have the same units
D.
A scalar, because it has a magnitude only
Question 2
A runner completes one lap of a circular track of circumference 400 m in 80 s. What are the average speed and the magnitude of the average velocity?
A.
0 m s⁻¹ and 5.0 m s⁻¹
B.
0 m s⁻¹ and 0 m s⁻¹
C.
5.0 m s⁻¹ and 0 m s⁻¹
D.
5.0 m s⁻¹ and 5.0 m s⁻¹
Question 3
An object moves with a constant velocity of −3.0 m s⁻¹ for 4.0 s. What is its displacement during this interval?
A.
−0.75 m
B.
0.75 m
C.
12 m
D.
−12 m
Question 4
A projectile is launched at 30° above the horizontal with speed 16 m s⁻¹. Fluid resistance is negligible. What happens to its horizontal component of velocity during the flight?
A.
It decreases uniformly to zero at the highest point.
B.
It increases uniformly because gravity acts downwards.
C.
It changes direction at the highest point.
D.
It remains constant.
Question 5
A small object falls vertically through air and reaches terminal speed. What is its acceleration at terminal speed?
A.
g downward
B.
Greater than g downward
C.
g upward
D.
0
Question 6
Define velocity.
[1]
Define acceleration.
[1]
Question 7
A car travelling at 20 m s⁻¹ brakes uniformly to rest in 5.0 s. What is the acceleration of the car?
A.
0 m s⁻²
B.
−100 m s⁻²
C.
−4.0 m s⁻²
D.
4.0 m s⁻²
Question 8
Positive direction is to the right. An object is moving left and slowing down. What is the sign of its acceleration?
A.
Negative
B.
Positive
C.
The sign cannot be assigned because the speed is decreasing.
D.
Zero
Question 9
On a displacement–time graph for one-dimensional motion, what does the gradient of a tangent to the curve at one instant represent?
A.
Instantaneous velocity
B.
Distance travelled
C.
Instantaneous acceleration
D.
Average speed from the start
Question 10
A displacement of 50 m is directed 37° above the horizontal. What is the vertical component of the displacement?
A.
83 m
B.
30 m
C.
67 m
D.
40 m
Question 11
A velocity–time graph is curved with a gradient that decreases steadily but remains positive. What is the motion?
A.
The object is speeding up with decreasing acceleration.
B.
The object has uniform acceleration.
C.
The object has zero displacement.
D.
The object is slowing down with decreasing acceleration.
Question 12
The equations of uniformly accelerated motion are being used for an object moving through oil. Which condition is required for their use over the whole interval?
A.
The acceleration is constant in magnitude and direction.
B.
The speed is constant throughout the interval.
C.
The displacement is zero at the end of the interval.
D.
The object moves in a fluid.
Question 13
A student walks 60 m east and then 20 m west in a total time of 40 s.
Calculate the distance travelled.
[1]
Calculate the displacement, taking east as positive.
[1]
Calculate the average velocity.
[1]
Question 14
A ball is released from rest and falls vertically for 1.20 s. Air resistance is negligible and g = 9.81 m s⁻².
Calculate the speed of the ball after 1.20 s.
[1]
Calculate the distance fallen.
[1]
Question 15
A car speedometer reads 18 m s⁻¹ at one instant during a journey.
State whether this is an average or instantaneous value.
[1]
Explain your answer.
[1]
Question 16
Outline how a velocity–time graph can distinguish between uniform and non-uniform acceleration.
Question 17
A motion sensor records the displacement of a trolley along a straight track.
State the displacement of the trolley at the start of the recording.
[1]
Determine the average velocity over the whole recording.
[1]
Use the graph to estimate the instantaneous velocity at a labelled time.
[1]
Suggest why the instantaneous velocity is different from the average velocity.
[1]
Question 18
The velocity of a cart is measured at regular time intervals.
Identify the interval during which the cart has constant velocity.
[1]
Determine the acceleration during the first accelerating section.
[1]
Determine the total displacement during the motion.
[1]
Question 19
The diagram shows successive positions of a projectile photographed at equal time intervals. Air resistance is negligible.
Describe the horizontal spacing of successive images.
[1]
Describe how the vertical spacing changes during the motion.
[1]
Explain what this shows about the horizontal and vertical components of motion.
[1]
Question 20
A ball is projected horizontally from a cliff with speed 12 m s⁻¹. Neglecting fluid resistance, what is the horizontal acceleration of the ball during flight?
A.
12 m s⁻²
B.
It decreases with time.
C.
0 m s⁻²
D.
9.8 m s⁻²
Question 21
Two identical balls are launched with the same initial velocity, one in vacuum and one in air. What is the usual effect of air resistance on the trajectory?
A.
The range and maximum height are both smaller.
B.
The path remains exactly parabolic but shorter.
C.
The horizontal velocity remains constant but the vertical velocity changes.
D.
The range is larger but the maximum height is smaller.
Question 22
An object starts from rest and moves with constant acceleration. It travels 18 m in 3.0 s. What distance does it travel in the next 3.0 s?
A.
54 m
B.
72 m
C.
36 m
D.
18 m
Question 23
A projectile is launched and lands at the same height with no fluid resistance. The launch speed is fixed. Which launch angles give the same range?
A.
Angles whose sum is 90°
B.
Angles whose difference is 90°
C.
Any two angles above the horizontal
D.
Only equal angles
Question 24
A charged particle enters a uniform electric field with velocity perpendicular to the field. Its motion is most similar to which kinematic model?
A.
Motion at terminal speed
B.
One-dimensional motion at constant velocity
C.
Projectile motion with constant acceleration in one direction
D.
Uniform circular motion with constant speed
Question 25
The graph shows the velocity of a trolley along a straight track.
Determine the acceleration between 0 s and 4 s.
[1]
Determine the displacement between 0 s and 6 s.
[1]
Question 26
A stone is projected horizontally from a ledge 45 m above the ground with horizontal speed 8.0 m s⁻¹. Air resistance is negligible and g = 9.8 m s⁻².
Calculate the time taken to reach the ground.
[1]
Calculate the horizontal distance travelled.
[1]
Question 27
A ball is thrown at an angle through air.
State one effect of air resistance on the range compared with the no-air-resistance model.
[1]
Explain why the acceleration of the ball is not constant.
[1]
Question 28
A projectile is launched from level ground at 25 m s⁻¹ at 40° above the horizontal. Air resistance is negligible.
Calculate the initial horizontal velocity component.
[1]
Calculate the initial vertical velocity component.
[1]
Calculate the time to reach the highest point.
[1]
Question 29
A train accelerates uniformly from 12 m s⁻¹ to 28 m s⁻¹ over a displacement of 400 m.
Calculate its acceleration.
[1]
Calculate the time taken.
[1]
Question 30
An object's velocity changes from 6.0 m s⁻¹ east to 8.0 m s⁻¹ north in 2.0 s.
Determine the magnitude of the change in velocity.
[1]
Determine the magnitude of the average acceleration.
[1]
Question 31
A student uses v² = u² + 2as to analyse a parachutist from the moment of jumping until just before landing.
State the assumption about acceleration required for this equation.
[1]
Explain why the assumption is not valid for the whole fall.
[1]
Question 32
A small sphere is released from rest and falls through a liquid. The speed is recorded as a function of time.
Describe how the speed changes at the start of the motion.
[1]
State what happens to the acceleration as time increases.
[1]
Identify the terminal speed from the graph.
[1]
Explain why the acceleration approaches zero.
[1]
Question 33
A student investigates free fall using an electronic timer. The graph shows fall height against the square of fall time.
Describe the relationship shown by the graph.
[1]
Determine the gradient of the best-fit line.
[1]
Use the gradient to determine g.
[1]
Suggest one physical reason why the value may be less than 9.81 m s⁻².
[1]
Question 34
A table gives position measurements for a cart at equal time intervals.
| Time / s | Position / m |
|---|---|
| 0.0 | 0.00 |
| 0.5 | 0.16 |
| 1.0 | 0.36 |
| 1.5 | 0.60 |
| 2.0 | 0.88 |
| 2.5 | 1.20 |
| 3.0 | 1.56 |
Calculate the average velocity between two specified adjacent times.
[1]
Estimate the instantaneous velocity at a specified time using neighbouring data.
[1]
Determine whether the cart is accelerating.
[1]
Suggest one improvement to obtain a better estimate of instantaneous velocity.
[1]
Question 35
A projectile is at the highest point of its trajectory. Air resistance is negligible.
State the vertical component of velocity at this point.
[1]
Explain why the projectile is still accelerating.
[1]
Question 36
A student wants to determine g by dropping a steel ball from rest through different measured heights.
State the graph that should be plotted to obtain a straight line.
[1]
State how g is obtained from the graph.
[1]
Suggest one reason for taking measurements at several heights.
[1]
Question 37
A ball is launched from ground level at 18 m s⁻¹ and lands at ground level. Its initial vertical component of velocity is 12 m s⁻¹. Neglect air resistance.
Calculate the time of flight.
[1]
Calculate the horizontal component of the initial velocity.
[1]
Calculate the range.
[1]
Question 38
A ball is launched horizontally and an identical ball is dropped from rest at the same instant from the same height. Air resistance is negligible.
Compare the times taken to reach the ground.
[1]
Explain your answer.
[1]
Question 39
A simulation compares projectile motion with and without fluid resistance for the same initial velocity.
Identify which trajectory corresponds to motion without fluid resistance.
[1]
Compare the maximum heights of the two trajectories.
[1]
Compare the ranges of the two trajectories.
[1]
Explain why the trajectory with fluid resistance is not parabolic.
[1]
Question 40
The velocity–time graph for an elevator moving vertically is shown. Upward is positive.
Identify one time interval when the elevator is stationary.
[1]
Determine the acceleration during the initial motion.
[1]
Determine the net displacement for the complete journey.
[1]
State what the sign of the displacement means.
[1]
Question 41
A projectile is launched at different angles with the same speed and lands at the same height. The graph shows range against launch angle.
Identify the angle that gives the greatest range.
[1]
Identify two different angles that give the same range.
[1]
Explain why these two angles give the same range in the no-resistance model.
[1]
Question 42
A ball is projected horizontally from the roof of a building. Fluid resistance is negligible.
Outline the assumptions of the projectile model used for this motion.
[1]
Explain how the horizontal and vertical motions are analysed to predict the time of flight and horizontal range.
[1]
Question 43
A sports ball is kicked through air at an angle to the horizontal.
State two differences between the motion with air resistance and the motion without air resistance.
[1]
Discuss how fluid resistance affects the ball's velocity, acceleration, range and trajectory.
[1]
Question 44
A student models the motion of a small cart down a straight ramp using equations of uniformly accelerated motion.
State the condition under which the standard kinematic equations are valid and identify one graph feature that would test it.
[1]
Evaluate the use of this model for predicting the cart's position and velocity during the motion.
[1]
Question 45
A vehicle's acceleration is recorded during a test run.
Identify whether the acceleration is uniform over the full interval.
[1]
Determine the change in velocity during a specified interval.
[1]
Explain why using a single constant-acceleration equation for the full interval may be inappropriate.
[1]
Suggest a numerical method for estimating displacement from the data.
[1]
Question 46
A student walks from home to a shop and returns home by a different route.
Define distance and displacement.
[1]
Compare and contrast average speed and average velocity for this complete journey, referring to scalar and vector quantities.
[1]
Question 47
A computer model calculates the motion of a falling object by updating its velocity and position in small time steps. The acceleration decreases as speed increases.
Explain why the acceleration is non-uniform in this model.
[1]
Evaluate the advantages of a time-step model compared with using the standard constant-acceleration equations for this motion.
[1]
Question 48
A projectile is launched from ground level with speed u at an angle θ above the horizontal and lands at the same level. Fluid resistance is negligible.
Resolve the initial velocity into horizontal and vertical components and state the acceleration components.
[1]
Explain how these components are used to determine the time of flight, maximum height and range.
[1]
Question 49
A motion sensor produces a curved velocity–time graph for a runner during a short sprint.
State how acceleration and displacement are obtained from a velocity–time graph.
[1]
Discuss how the graph can be used to analyse non-uniform motion and identify limitations of the analysis.
[1]
Question 50
The motion of a ball projected horizontally in a uniform gravitational field is compared with the motion of a charged particle entering a uniform electric field at right angles to the field.
State two features common to both motions when resistive effects are negligible.
[1]
Compare and contrast the two motions, including the role of acceleration components and the shape of the path.
[1]
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