Course: Separate Physics only | Find each scene on YouTube, watch it, then answer the questions. Write your answers on paper first, then tap Show answer.
Useful data: Speed of light = 3 × 10⁸ m/s · g on Earth = 9.8 N/kg · g on the Moon = 1.6 N/kg · W = mg · Orbital speed = 2πr ÷ T (distance round the orbit ÷ time)
1. Fantasia – the solar system forms
🎬 The scene: The Rite of Spring segment of Fantasia (1940) – swirling gas and dust form the solar system and the young, volcanic Earth.
Q1 (F) What was our solar system formed from, and what force pulled it together?
Show answer
A cloud of dust and gas (a nebula), pulled together by gravity.
Q2 (F/H) Name the eight planets in order from the Sun.
Show answer
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune.
Q3 (H) Explain how the Sun became a star.
Show answer
Gravity pulled most of the material to the centre, forming a protostar. As it collapsed, it got hotter and denser until hydrogen nuclei began to fuse into helium, releasing energy – a star was born.
2. Star Wars – the twin suns of Tatooine
🎬 The scene: Luke Skywalker watches the two suns of Tatooine set (A New Hope).
Q1 (F) How do stars like these produce their energy?
Show answer
By nuclear fusion – hydrogen nuclei join to form helium, releasing energy.
Q2 (F/H) A main sequence star stays stable for billions of years. Explain why.
Show answer
The inward force of gravity is balanced by the outward pressure from the energy released by fusion.
Q3 (H) Describe what will happen to a star the size of our Sun when it runs out of hydrogen. What would be different for a much bigger star?
Show answer
Sun-sized: red giant → white dwarf → black dwarf. A much bigger star becomes a red supergiant, explodes as a supernova, and leaves a neutron star or black hole. Elements heavier than iron are made in supernovae.
3. The Lion King – the great kings in the stars
🎬 The scene: Under the night sky, Mufasa tells Simba that the great kings of the past look down from the stars.
Q1 (F) What are the stars Simba and Mufasa are looking at? Which galaxy are they in?
Show answer
They are other suns, very far away. Almost all the stars you can see are in our galaxy, the Milky Way.
Q2 (F/H) The nearest star (after the Sun) is about 4.2 light-years away. When did the light we see from it set off?
Show answer
About 4.2 years ago – we see stars as they were when the light left them.
Q3 (H) A star 2000 light-years away exploded 1000 years ago. Can we see the explosion yet? Explain.
Show answer
No. The light takes 2000 years to reach us, so it is only halfway here. We’ll see it in another 1000 years – some of the stars we see tonight may no longer exist!
4. Moana – navigating by the stars
🎬 The scene: Maui teaches Moana wayfinding – reading the stars, waves and currents to navigate the ocean.
Q1 (F) During the night, the stars seem to move across the sky. What is really happening?
Show answer
The Earth is spinning on its axis (once every 24 hours), so the stars appear to move.
Q2 (F/H) What force keeps the Earth in orbit around the Sun, and the Moon in orbit around the Earth?
Show answer
Gravity.
Q3 (H) We see different stars at night in summer and in winter. Explain why.
Show answer
The Earth orbits the Sun once a year. As it moves round, the night side of the Earth faces a different part of space, so different stars are visible.
5. Despicable Me – Gru steals the Moon
🎬 The scene: Gru flies into space, zaps the Moon with his shrink ray and pockets it.
Q1 (F) The Moon is a natural satellite. What is a satellite?
Show answer
An object that orbits a larger object – the Moon orbits the Earth.
Q2 (F/H) If the Earth’s gravity suddenly vanished, what would the Moon do? Use Newton’s first law.
Show answer
With no resultant force, it would move off in a straight line at a constant speed instead of curving round the Earth.
Q3 (H) Real or fake? The shrink ray makes the Moon small, but doesn’t remove any of its matter. Could Gru then pick it up?
Show answer
Fake. If none of its matter is removed, the Moon would still have its enormous mass (about 7 × 10²² kg), so its weight and gravity would be far too great for anyone to lift.
6. Wallace & Gromit: A Grand Day Out – a trip to the Moon
🎬 The scene: Wallace and Gromit land their home-made rocket on the Moon and go looking for cheese.
Q1 (F) What is the difference between mass and weight?
Show answer
Mass is the amount of matter (kg) and is the same everywhere. Weight is the force of gravity on that mass (N) and depends on where you are.
Q2 (F/H) Wallace has a mass of 80 kg. Calculate his weight on Earth and on the Moon.
Show answer
Earth: 80 × 9.8 = 784 N. Moon: 80 × 1.6 = 128 N. His mass is still 80 kg.
Q3 (H) Real or fake? Wallace and Gromit walk around on the Moon without spacesuits. What’s wrong with that?
Show answer
The Moon has no atmosphere – its gravity is too weak to hold onto gases – so there’s no air to breathe. (And it definitely isn’t made of cheese!)
7. WALL-E – blasting through the satellites
🎬 The scene: Clinging to EVE’s rocket, WALL-E blasts off through a thick layer of old satellites and space junk around the Earth.
Q1 (F) Give three uses of artificial satellites.
Show answer
Any three: communications (TV, phones), weather monitoring, GPS/navigation, observing the Earth, space telescopes.
Q2 (F/H) Why don’t satellites fall down to Earth?
Show answer
They are moving very fast sideways. Gravity pulls them towards the Earth, constantly changing their direction, so they keep curving round in an orbit instead of falling in.
Q3 (H) A geostationary satellite orbits at a radius of 42 000 000 m, taking 24 hours. Calculate its speed. Satellites in smaller orbits move faster – explain why.
Show answer
v = 2πr ÷ T = (2 × π × 42 000 000) ÷ 86 400 = about 3100 m/s. Closer to Earth, gravity is stronger, so a satellite must move faster to stay in a stable orbit.
8. Hidden Figures – calculating an orbit
🎬 The trailer: The true story of Katherine Johnson, the NASA mathematician who calculated the orbit for John Glenn’s flight around the Earth.
Q1 (F) Katherine Johnson calculated the path of John Glenn’s capsule around the Earth. What force kept it in orbit?
Show answer
The Earth’s gravity.
Q2 (F/H) The capsule orbited at a radius of about 6 600 000 m and took 88 minutes per orbit. Calculate its speed.
Show answer
T = 88 × 60 = 5280 s. v = (2 × π × 6 600 000) ÷ 5280 = about 7900 m/s (7.9 km/s)
Q3 (H) In a circular orbit the capsule’s speed stays the same. Explain why it is still accelerating.
Show answer
Its direction is always changing, so its velocity is changing. A changing velocity means it is accelerating – towards the centre of the Earth, caused by gravity.
9. Lightyear – the hyperspeed test flight
🎬 The scene: Buzz loops around the nearby star to build up speed on his first hyperspeed test flight (2022 film).
Q1 (F) Despite its name, a light-year is not a time. What is it?
Show answer
A distance – how far light travels in one year.
Q2 (F/H) Calculate one light-year in metres. (1 year ≈ 3.15 × 10⁷ s)
Show answer
s = vt = 3 × 10⁸ × 3.15 × 10⁷ = 9.5 × 10¹⁵ m (about 9.5 million million km)
Q3 (H) Buzz loops around the star to build up speed. How can a star’s gravity change the speed and direction of a spaceship?
Show answer
Gravity is a force, so it can make the ship accelerate – changing its speed and/or its direction. Real space probes use the gravity of planets in “slingshot” manoeuvres to speed up. (Nothing can travel faster than light, though!)
10. Toy Story – “To infinity and beyond!”
🎬 The scene: Buzz shouts “To infinity and beyond!” and launches himself off Andy’s bed.
Q1 (F) What does the Big Bang theory say about how the universe began?
Show answer
The universe began from a very small, extremely hot and dense region about 13.8 billion years ago, and has been expanding ever since.
Q2 (F/H) What is red-shift?
Show answer
Light from distant galaxies has longer wavelengths than expected – it is shifted towards the red end of the spectrum. This shows the galaxies are moving away from us.
Q3 (H) Explain how red-shift provides evidence for the Big Bang.
Show answer
More distant galaxies have a bigger red-shift, so they are moving away faster. This means the whole universe is expanding – so in the past it must have been much smaller, supporting the idea that it began from a tiny point. Observations of distant supernovae suggest the expansion is even speeding up.
Teachers: the buttons open a YouTube search, so you can pick whichever upload is currently available. Please watch the clip through before showing it to a class.
