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5 Newtonian world and astrophysics

7 dot points across 7 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

What force keeps an object moving in a circle, and how is it related to its speed and radius?

Circular motion: angular displacement and angular velocity, the period and frequency of circular motion, centripetal acceleration, and the centripetal force needed to maintain circular motion.
A focused answer to the OCR H556 circular motion content, covering angular displacement in radians, angular velocity and its link to period and frequency, the relationship between linear and angular speed, centripetal acceleration, and the centripetal force required to keep an object moving in a circle.
11 min answer →

How do we know the Universe is expanding, and what is the evidence for the Big Bang?

Cosmology: astronomical distances and parallax, the Doppler effect and redshift, Hubble's law and the expansion of the Universe, the age of the Universe, and the evidence for the Big Bang.
A focused answer to the OCR H556 cosmology content, covering astronomical distance units and parallax, the Doppler effect and redshift of light from galaxies, Hubble's law and the expansion of the Universe, the estimate of the age of the Universe from the Hubble constant, and the evidence for the Big Bang including the cosmic microwave background.
11 min answer →

How does gravity vary with distance, and what determines the orbits of planets and satellites?

Gravitational fields: Newton's law of gravitation, gravitational field strength, gravitational potential and potential energy, the motion of satellites and Kepler's third law, and geostationary orbits.
A focused answer to the OCR H556 gravitational fields content, covering Newton's law of gravitation, gravitational field strength for radial and uniform fields, gravitational potential and potential energy, the motion of satellites with Kepler's third law, geostationary orbits, and escape velocity.
12 min answer →

How do the random motions of gas molecules give rise to pressure and the gas laws?

Ideal gases and kinetic theory: the ideal gas equation, the Boltzmann constant, the assumptions of the kinetic model, the pressure equation, and the link between mean kinetic energy and absolute temperature.
A focused answer to the OCR H556 content on ideal gases and kinetic theory, covering the ideal gas equation in both molar and molecular forms, the Boltzmann constant, the assumptions of the kinetic model, the kinetic theory pressure equation, root mean square speed, and the link between mean molecular kinetic energy and absolute temperature.
12 min answer →

What defines simple harmonic motion, and how do damping and resonance affect oscillations?

Simple harmonic motion: the defining condition, displacement, velocity and acceleration in SHM, the energy interchange, the period of mass-spring and pendulum systems, and free and forced oscillations with damping and resonance.
A focused answer to the OCR H556 oscillations content, covering the defining condition for simple harmonic motion, the displacement, velocity and acceleration equations, the interchange of kinetic and potential energy, the period of a mass-spring system and a simple pendulum, and free and forced oscillations with damping and resonance.
12 min answer →

How do stars form, live and die, and how do we read their temperatures and luminosities?

Stars and the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram: stellar formation and evolution, Wien's displacement law and Stefan's law, luminosity and the inverse-square law, stellar spectra, and the structure of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram.
A focused answer to the OCR H556 astrophysics content on stars, covering stellar formation and the life cycles of low-mass and high-mass stars, Wien's displacement law and Stefan's law for black-body radiation, luminosity and the inverse-square law for intensity, stellar spectra, and the regions of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram.
12 min answer →

What is temperature, and how much energy does it take to heat a substance or change its state?

Thermal physics: temperature and internal energy, the kelvin scale and absolute zero, specific heat capacity and specific latent heat, and changes of state.
A focused answer to the OCR H556 thermal physics content, covering temperature as a measure of average kinetic energy, internal energy, the kelvin scale and absolute zero, specific heat capacity and specific latent heat, and the energy changes during changes of state.
11 min answer →