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AQA GCSE Physics — Waves, Magnetism and Space flashcards

10 of 82 cards free to study here · 3 topics · the whole deck is built into Willys

Topics 6 to 8 of AQA GCSE Physics: wave properties, sound and ultrasound, seismic waves, the electromagnetic spectrum, lenses, colour, black bodies; magnets, the motor effect, induction and transformers; stars, orbits and red-shift.

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Learn deck · part of AQA GCSE Physics · written against: AQA GCSE Physics (8463) specification, version 1.1; Higher Tier and separate-science-only cards marked on the front. Updated 2026-10-10.

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  1. What is the difference between a transverse wave and a longitudinal wave?
    In a transverse wave the oscillations are perpendicular to the direction of energy transfer; in a longitudinal wave they are parallel to it.

    Example: ripples on water are transverse; sound in air is longitudinal.
    Waves › Properties of Waves
  2. Sound travelling through air is a longitudinal wave. What are its compressions and rarefactions?
    Compressions are regions where the air particles are squashed together; rarefactions are regions where they are spread apart.
    Waves › Properties of Waves
  3. What evidence shows that a ripple, not the water itself, travels across a pond?
    A floating leaf or cork bobs up and down as the ripples pass but does not travel along with them.
    Waves › Properties of Waves
  4. What is the amplitude of a wave?
    The maximum displacement of any point on the wave, measured from where it sits when undisturbed (its rest position).

    Watch out: it is measured from the middle to a crest, not from trough to crest.
    Waves › Properties of Waves
  5. What happens when two like poles, or two unlike poles, are brought near each other?
    Like poles repel; unlike poles attract.

    Why: this is a non-contact force between magnets.
    Magnetism and Electromagnetism › Permanent and Induced Magnetism
  6. What is the difference between a permanent magnet and an induced magnet?
    A permanent magnet always has its own field; an induced magnet becomes magnetic only when placed in a field and soon loses most or all of its magnetism once removed.
    Magnetism and Electromagnetism › Permanent and Induced Magnetism
  7. Why is the force between a magnet and an unmagnetised iron nail always attractive?
    The nail becomes an induced magnet, and induced magnetism always causes attraction.
    Magnetism and Electromagnetism › Permanent and Induced Magnetism
  8. What does our solar system consist of? (not in Combined Science)
    One star, the Sun, plus eight planets and several dwarf planets in orbit around it, and the moons (natural satellites) circling the planets.

    Watch out: asteroids and comets orbit the Sun too (extra to the AQA list), and the solar system is not a galaxy but a tiny part of the Milky Way.
    Space Physics › Our Solar System
  9. How did the Sun form? (not in Combined Science)
    From a nebula, a cloud of gas and dust that gravitational attraction drew inwards until it was hot and dense enough for fusion to start.
    Space Physics › Our Solar System
  10. Why does a main sequence star like the Sun stay a stable size for billions of years? (not in Combined Science)
    There is an equilibrium between the inward pull of gravity and the outward expansion due to fusion energy.
    Space Physics › Our Solar System

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About these cards

Review status: Second-reader reviewed, with corrections applied.

Checked against:

  • Topic outline and equation list follow the AQA GCSE Physics (8463) specification, version 1.1 (outline only; no specification text reproduced).
  • OpenStax College Physics 2e, consulted as a reference; no text copied.
  • OpenStax Astronomy 2e, consulted as a reference; no text copied.

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