DEPARTMENT FOR CURRICULUM,

LIFELONG LEARNING AND EMPLOYABILITY

Directorate for Learning and Assessment Programmes Track 3
Educational Assessment Unit
Annual Examinations for Secondary Schools 2019

YEAR 10 PHYSICS TIME: 2 hours

Name: _____________________________________ Class: _______________
INFORMATION FOR CANDIDATES
• Where necessary take acceleration due to gravity ‘g’ to be 10 m/s2.
• The use of a calculator is allowed.
• The number of marks for each question is given in brackets at the end of
each question.
• You may find these equations useful.
Force F=m a W=mg

total distance (u + v) t 1 2
Average Speed= s= s = ut + at
Motion
total time 2 2
v = u + at v2 = u2 + 2as Momentum = mv
Q = It V = IR E=QV
R ∝ L/A E=IVt
Electricity
1 1 1
RTOTAL = R1 + R2 + R3 = +
RTOTAL R1 R2
real depth speed of light in air
η= η=
apparent depth speed of light in medium
Waves v=fλ hi image height
1 magnification = =
f= ho object height
T
1 1
Others Area of triangle = bh Area of Trapezium = (a+b)h
2 2

INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES For Examiner’s Use Only

• Use blue or black ink. Pencil should be Question Max Mark
used for diagrams only. 1 8
• Read each question carefully and make
2 8
sure that you know what you have to do
3 8
before starting your answer.
4 8
• Answer ALL questions.
5 8
• All working must be shown.
6 15
7 15
8 15
Written 85
Practical 15

Total 100
This document consists of 12 printed pages.

Physics – Year 10 – Track 3 – 2019 Page 1 of 12

SECTION A
Each question carries 8 marks.
This section carries 40 marks of the total marks for this paper.
Kelsey would like to do some research about
16 V
the properties of an LDR and sets up the circuit
shown in Figure 1.
What does LDR stand for?
_____________________________ [1]
4000 Ω
Add an ammeter to Figure 1 to measure
the current passing through the circuit. LDR Fixed resistor
[1] Figure 1
If the resistance of the LDR is 400 kΩ when the LDR is in a dark room and
the fixed resistor has a resistance of 4000 Ω, find:
The total resistance of the LDR and the fixed resistor.
_____________________________________________________ [2]
The current passing through the circuit.
________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________ [2]

Kelsey opens the door of the room and the LDR is no longer in the dark. What
will happen to the current flowing in the circuit? Explain.
____________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________ [2]

A hovercraft travels from Valletta to Pozzallo in Sicily. The hovercraft and

passengers have a total mass of 3.0 × 104 kg.
Calculate the value (size) of the upward force as it travels at constant height.
_________________________________________________________ [2]
The graph in Figure 2 shows how the speed varies with time from when the
hovercraft leaves Valletta till when it arrives in Pozzallo.
A graph of Velocity against Time
25

20
Velocity in m/s

15

10

0
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 4500 5000 5500 6000 6500 7000
Time in seconds
Figure 2

Page 2 of 12 Physics – Year 10 – Track 3 – 2019

 Use the graph in Figure 2 to:
calculate the acceleration of the hovercraft.
________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________ [2]

find the total distance moved.

________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________ [2]

work out the average speed of the hovercraft.

_____________________________________________________ [1]
draw the average speed on the graph in Figure 2. [1]
Figure 3 below shows two buoys which are floating 3 m apart.

buoy
3m

Figure 3

Calculate:
the wavelength of the sea waves shown in Figure 3.
_____________________________________________________ [2]

the frequency of the waves given that ten complete waves pass in 20 s.
________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________ [1]

the speed of the sea waves.

_____________________________________________________ [2]

The sea waves approach a wall as

wavefronts wall
shown in Figure 4.
On Figure 4 draw the three
wavefronts and their direction N
after the wall reflects them.
[2]
After hitting the wall, the
waves have a smaller
amplitude. Explain.
________________________
_____________________ [1]
Figure 4

Physics – Year 10 – Track 3 – 2019 Page 3 of 12

 The wavelengths of waves in the electromagnetic spectrum range from
approximately 10−13 m for gamma to 103 m for radio waves as shown in Figure 5.

A B

m
Figure 5

Name the radiation in the regions A and B.

____________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________ [2]

Name TWO properties common to all waves in the electromagnetic spectrum.

____________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________ [2]

State one use of:

ultraviolet rays.

______________________________________________________ [1]

gamma rays.

______________________________________________________ [1]

infrared rays.

______________________________________________________ [1]

Visible light is divided into a spectrum of colours of different wavelengths.

Red, orange, violet and green are part of the visible spectrum. Red has the
longest wavelength and violet has the shortest wavelength of the visible
spectrum. Complete the table shown below with the appropriate colour
(orange or green) for each wavelength. [1]

Colour Approximate Wavelength (× 10−7 m)

Violet 4.0

5.5

6.0

Red 7.0

Page 4 of 12 Physics – Year 10 – Track 3 – 2019

 Andrew, of mass 65 kg, skates with a velocity of 5 m/s towards Alexandra who is
momentarily at rest, as shown in Figure 6. He joins Alexandra, of mass 55 kg.
After joining, Andrew and Alexandra move together for a short distance.

m = 65 kg m = 55 kg
v = 5 m/s (at rest)

Figure 6

Calculate Andrew’s momentum before joining Alexandra.

____________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________ [2]

What is the value of Alexandra’s momentum before Andrew joins her?

__________________________________________________________ [1]

Determine the value of their total momentum after joining.

__________________________________________________________ [1]

Find the common initial velocity as they start moving off together.

____________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________ [2]

Later, Andrew and Alexandra come to rest. They decide to face each other
and push each other apart. Andrew moves off with a speed of 3 m/s in one
direction whilst Alexandra moves off in the opposite direction. Does Alexandra
move off with a smaller speed, the same speed or a larger speed than
Andrew? Explain your reasoning.
____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________ [2]

Physics – Year 10 – Track 3 – 2019 Page 5 of 12

SECTION B
Each question carries 15 marks.
This section carries 45 marks of the total marks for this paper.

This question is about light rays.

Figure 7 shows a mirror M1 fixed on the side of a road so that a car X has a
better view of oncoming cars.

mirror M1

car Z

car Y

car X

Figure 7

On Figure 7, draw a ray of light to show how the driver of car X can see
car Z. Label the incident ray, the reflected ray and the normal. [2]
On the diagram show the position of the image and label it as ‘I’. [1]
Compare the size of the object distance with the image distance.

______________________________________________________ [1]

What type of image is seen in the mirror?

______________________________________________________ [1]

Explain what is meant by the term ‘lateral inversion’.

______________________________________________________ [1]

Draw another mirror and label it M2 so that car X can see car Y. [1]

Page 6 of 12 Physics – Year 10 – Track 3 – 2019

 Figure 8 shows a ray of light travelling through an optical fibre made of glass.
optical fibre

air

ray of light
A
Figure 8
What happens to the speed of light when it passes from a less dense
medium to a denser medium?
______________________________________________________ [1]
Why is the ray of light at A not refracted?
______________________________________________________ [1]
One condition for total internal reflection to occur is that the light ray
must travel from a dense to a less dense medium. State the other
condition.
______________________________________________________ [1]
Fibre optic cables are replacing copper wires in telecommunication links.
What advantage do you think optical fibre cables have over copper
cables?
______________________________________________________ [1]

The ray diagram below shows the lens set up for a simple projector.

Complete the ray diagram to show the position of the image and label it
‘I’. [3]
Use your ray diagram to find the magnification of the lens.
_____________________________________________________ [1]

Physics – Year 10 – Track 3 – 2019 Page 7 of 12

 This question is about electricity.

Nathan and Kaya are in the family garage and find a box full of copper wires, a
16 V battery, some resistors, a rheostat, crocodile clips and a switch.
Nathan wants to investigate the voltage-current characteristics of one of the
resistors. They set up a circuit as shown in Figure 9.

switch 16 V battery

rheostat

Figure 9

They measure the current and voltage of resistor R. They then repeat the
experiment each time changing the resistance of the rheostat. The measurements
of voltage and current of resistor R are shown in the table below.

I (A) 0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6

V (V) 0 2.0 4.2 6.0 7.8 10.0 12.0

Plot a graph of Voltage V on the y-axis against Current I on the x-axis.

Draw the best straight line through your points. [4]
Explain why Nathan and Kaya can conclude that resistor R is an ohmic
conductor.
_____________________________________________________ [1]

Calculate the resistance R by finding the gradient of the graph.

________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________ [2]

Calculate the resistance of the rheostat when the current through the
circuit is 0.5 A.
________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________ [3]

Page 8 of 12 Physics – Year 10 – Track 3 – 2019

Physics – Year 10 – Track 3 – 2019 Page 9 of 12
 Kaya notices that the wires have different thicknesses. She thinks that the
thicker the wire, the more current will pass through it. They decide to test
this idea. They cut the wires into equal lengths and then measure the
thickness of each wire. They set up the circuit shown in Figure 10.

battery fixed resistor

switch

crocodile clips

Figure 10

Why do they cut the wires to make them all of the same length?

______________________________________________________ [1]

What is the purpose of the fixed resistor in the circuit?

______________________________________________________ [1]

Describe the experiment Nathan and Kaya should carry out to see
whether Kaya’s idea is correct. Mention also any other additional
apparatus needed to perform this experiment.
________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________ [3]

Page 10 of 12 Physics – Year 10 – Track 3 – 2019

 This question is about motion.
Cars are tested for safety in special laboratories using dummies instead of
persons in simulated accidents, as shown in Figure 11.

dummy

headrest

seat belt

Figure 11

A car which is at rest is hit from the back, making the car move suddenly
forward. The dummy’s head hits the headrest. Explain why this happens.
________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________ [1]

When a car stops suddenly, seat belts stretch slightly before stopping
the passenger from moving forward. Explain the advantage of having an
such a seat belt.
________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________ [2]

Mention one other safety feature in modern cars.

______________________________________________________ [1]

If the seat belt is removed and the car is made to crash into a wall, the
dummy will continue to move forward during the crash. State which of
Newton’s laws of motion explains the dummy’s motion.
______________________________________________________ [1]

Physics – Year 10 – Track 3 – 2019 Page 11 of 12

 A person driving a car at a uniform velocity of 20 m/s saw a cat 31 m away,
as shown in Figure 12. The car did not stop in time to avoid hitting the cat.

cat
31 m

Figure 12

Given that the person’s reaction time was 0.3 s, find the thinking
distance.

______________________________________________________ [1]

Find the velocity of the car with which it hit the cat, given that the car
decelerated at 7 m/s2 for 1.85 s before it hit the cat.

________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________ [2]

If the car was travelling at the speed limit of 40 km/h (11.1 m/s) when
the driver first saw the cat, would the car have stopped in time and not
hit the cat? Assume that the driver’s reaction time was 0.3 s and the car
decelerated at 7 m/s2. Support your answer with the appropriate
calculations.
________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________ [5]

Mention ONE factor which increases the thinking distance.

______________________________________________________ [1]

Mention ONE factor which affects the braking distance.

______________________________________________________ [1]

Page 12 of 12 Physics – Year 10 – Track 3 – 2019