Momentum GCSE

Sep 5, 2026

Upload by Ivy

GCSE Momentum practice questions covering conservation of momentum and its effects in collisions and recoil scenarios. Tasks include calculating momentum and comparing it before and after firing, using momentum conservation to select inequalities, and explaining directional motion with momentum arguments. The set also uses distance-time graphs for bus and cyclist journeys, applies momentum and energy ideas to inelastic collisions, and calculates speeds via impulse (force × time).

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages45

Reading Time1 h 53 min

AccessFree to download

Momentum

Momentum in firing and recoil

Momentum conservation and comparison

Momentum with collisions (guns, cars, lorries)

Impulse and speed calculations

Collisions and coupled motion

Motion from distance-time graphs

Momentum GCSE Name: Class: ________________________ Date: | Time: | 164 minutes | | --- | --- | | Marks: | 164 marks | | Comments: | | Loxford School Page 1 of 45 1. A paintball gun is used to fire a small ball of paint, called a paintball, at a target. The figure below shows someone just about to fire a paintball gun. The paintball is inside the gun. (a) What is the momentum of the paintball before the gun is fired? Give a reason for your answer. ___________________________________________________________________ (2) (b) The gun fires the paintball forwards at a velocity of 90 m / s. The paintball has a mass of 0.0030 kg. Calculate the momentum of the paintball just after the gun is fired. | | | --- | | | Momentum = kg m / s (2) Loxford School Page 2 of 45 2. (c) The momentum of the gun and paintball is conserved. Use the correct answer from the box to complete the sentence. equal to greater than less than The total momentum of the gun and paintball just after the gun is fired will be the total momentum of the gun and paintball before the gun is fired. (1) (Total 5 marks) The figure below shows a skateboarder jumping forwards off his skateboard. The skateboard is stationary at the moment the skateboarder jumps. (a) The skateboard moves backwards as the skateboarder jumps forwards. Explain, using the idea of momentum, why the skateboard moves backwards. | | | --- | | | | | | | | | | | | | (3) Loxford School Page 3 of 45 3. (b) The mass of the skateboard is 1.8 kg and the mass of the skateboarder is 42 kg. Calculate the velocity at which the skateboard moves backwards if the skateboarder jumps forwards at a velocity of 0.3 m / s. | | | --- | | | | | | | | | Velocity of skateboard = m / s (3) (Total 6 marks) Part of a bus route is along a high street. The distance-time graph shows how far the bus travelled along the high street and how long it took. Time in seconds Loxford School Page 4 of 45 (a) Between which two points was the bus travelling the slowest? Put a tick ( ) in the box next to your answer. | Points | Tick ( ) | | --- | --- | | A – B | | | C – D | | | D – E | | Give a reason for your answer. ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ (2) (b) The bus travels at 5 m/s between points A and B. The bus and passengers have a total mass of 16 000 kg. Use the equation in the box to calculate the momentum of the bus and passengers between points A and B. momentum = mass x velocity Show clearly how you work out your answer. ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ Momentum = kg m/s (2) (c) A cyclist made the same journey along the high street. The cyclist started at the same time as the bus and completed the journey in 220 seconds. The cyclist travelled the whole distance at a constant speed. (i) Draw a line on the graph to show the cyclist’s journey. (2) (ii) After how many seconds did the cyclist overtake the bus? The cyclist overtook the bus after seconds. (1) (Total 7 marks) Loxford School Page 5 of 45 4. (a) The amount of damage caused when a car collides with a wall depends on the amount of energy transferred. If the speed of a car doubles, the amount of energy transferred in a collision increases four times. Explain, as fully as you can, why this is so. | | | --- | | | (3) (b) The diagram shows a car and a lorry about to collide. When they collide, the two vehicles become tightly locked together. (i) Calculate the speed of the vehicles immediately after the collision.(Show your working. There is no need to change to standard units. ) | | | --- | | | | | | | Answer km/h (6) (ii) The collision between the car and the lorry is ine

FAQs

How do you calculate momentum just after a gun fires a paintball?

Use momentum = mass × velocity with the given mass of the paintball and its forward velocity immediately after firing.

Why does a skateboard move backwards when the skateboarder jumps forwards?

Total momentum must be conserved; the skateboarder’s forwards momentum is matched by equal and opposite momentum of the skateboard, so the skateboard moves backwards.

What does it mean when a collision is inelastic in terms of energy?

In an inelastic collision, the kinetic energy after the collision is less than before because some energy is transferred to deformation and other non-kinetic forms.

Sep 5, 2026

Upload by Ivy