Science
Stage 9
Paper 1
2026
45 minutes
No additional materials are needed.
INSTRUCTIONS
• Answer all questions.
• Write your answers to each question in the space provided.
• You should show all your working on the question paper.
INFORMATION
• The total mark for this paper is 50.
• The number of marks for each question or part question is shown in brackets [ ].
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3146_01_8RP
© Cambridge University Press & Assessment 2026
2
1
Complete the sentences about the pathway of water in flowering plants.
Water is absorbed from the soil in to
cells.
Water is transported through
within the stems of plants.
Water
is lost from the surface of a plant leaf.
The process of water loss from the surface of a leaf is called
.
[4]
2
Look at the Periodic Table on page 20.
(a) The electronic structure of sodium, Na, is 2.8.1.
Write down the electronic structure of silicon, Si.
[1]
(b) Write down the chemical symbol for an element in the same group as nitrogen, N.
[1]
(c) Write down the chemical symbol for an element in the same period as lithium, Li.
[1]
(d) Write down the number of electrons in the outer shell (orbit) of barium, Ba.
[1]
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3
3
This question is about sound waves.
(a) Look at the diagram of the waveform of sound wave A.
The diagram shows several waves.
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
time in
seconds
(i) How many complete waves are there in 10 seconds?
number of complete waves =
[1]
(ii) The frequency of a wave is the number of waves that pass a point in one second.
Frequency is measured in Hz.
For sound wave B, there are 20 complete waves in 10 seconds.
What is the frequency of sound wave B?
frequency of sound wave B =
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Hz
[1]
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(b) Look at the diagram of the waveforms of two sound waves, C and D.
Waveforms C and D have different frequencies and different amplitudes.
waveform C
waveform D
0
5
10
15
20 time in s
Complete the sentences to compare the waveforms of sound wave C and of sound wave D.
Choose words from the list.
one quarter
one half
two times
four times
louder
quieter
higher pitched
lower pitched
the amplitude of waveform D.
The amplitude of waveform C is
This difference in amplitude means that sound wave C is
sound wave D.
The frequency of waveform C is
than
the frequency of waveform D.
This difference in frequency means that sound wave C is
sound wave D.
than
[2]
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5
4
The diagram shows part of the structure of the Earth.
tectonic plate
tectonic plate
mantle
core
The arrows show the direction of movement of the tectonic plates.
(a) The mantle contains moving magma.
What is the name of the thermal energy transfer process that makes magma move?
[1]
(b) The tectonic plates in the diagram are moving apart.
Tick () the box that shows the correct direction of movement of the magma in the mantle.
tectonic plate
tectonic plate
tectonic plate
mantle
core
tectonic plate
core
tectonic plate
tectonic plate
core
tectonic plate
mantle
mantle
tectonic plate
core
mantle
[1]
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6
5
Look at the diagram of the human excretory system.
A
B
C
D
Name parts A, B, C and D.
A
B
C
D
[4]
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7
6
Look at the table that shows some of the properties of elements in Group 1 of the Periodic Table.
melting point
in oC
boiling point
in oC
density
in g / cm3
lithium
181
1342
0.53
2.1
sodium
98
883
0.97
2.8.1
potassium
64
759
0.89
2.8.8.1
rubidium
39
688
1.53
2.8.18.8.1
caesium
29
669
1.88
2.8.18.18.8.1
francium
21
650
> 1.88
2.8.18.32.18.8.1
element
electronic structure
(a) Explain why all the elements in the table are in Group 1.
Use ideas about the electronic structures of the elements.
[1]
(b) Describe the trend in boiling points down Group 1.
[1]
(c) Which property does not show a clear trend down Group 1?
[1]
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8
7
This question is about the carbon cycle.
(a) Look at the diagram of part of the carbon cycle.
air
D
C
A
B
fossil fuels
E
animals
plants
Complete the table.
Use information from the diagram.
process
letter from diagram
combustion
photosynthesis
respiration
and
[4]
(b) When animals and plants die, they decompose.
Name the gas released into the air when this happens.
[1]
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9
8
Lily makes this electrical circuit.
P
R
Q
The circuit has:
•
•
•
a battery of cells
a resistor, R
two meters, P and Q.
(a) One meter measures the current in resistor R.
The other meter measures the voltage across resistor R.
Complete the table to:
•
•
name each meter
describe how each meter is connected in the circuit.
measurement
name of meter
how the meter is connected
current in resistor R
voltage across resistor R
[2]
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(b) Lily investigates the effect of adding more identical resistors to her circuit.
Each time she calculates the total resistance across the resistors.
Look at her table of results.
number of resistors
resistance
in Ω
1
200
2
103
3
67
4
50
6
33
Look at the graph of her results.
Two results have been plotted on the graph.
Complete the graph by:
•
•
•
labelling the axes
plotting the missing results
drawing a curve of best fit.
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220
200
180
160
140
............................
120
............................
100
80
60
40
20
0
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
......................................................
......................................................
[3]
(c) Use the graph to predict the resistance of the circuit with 5 resistors.
resistance =
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Ω
[1]
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9
Yuri investigates the mean birth mass of children from mothers who:
•
•
did not smoke
did smoke.
mothers who
did not smoke
4000
mothers who
did smoke
3500
mean birth
mass
3000
in g
2500
2000
36
37
38
39
40
fetal age at birth in weeks
41
42
(a) Describe the relationship between fetal age at birth and mean birth mass.
[1]
(b) Write down one way the results show that smoking affects fetal development.
[1]
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10 Aiko investigates how changing variables affects the rate of reaction.
She reacts magnesium metal with dilute hydrochloric acid.
Aiko predicts that increasing the temperature of the acid will increase the rate of reaction.
(a) Explain why Aiko’s prediction is correct.
Use ideas about the reacting particle model.
[2]
(b) Suggest one other variable Aiko changes to increase the rate of this reaction.
[1]
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11 This question is about energy.
Draw one straight line from each term to its correct description.
term
description
conservation of energy
a measure of the energy
in an object
evaporation
when the most energetic particles
escape from the surface of a liquid
heat
energy cannot be created
or destroyed
heat dissipation
a measure of how hot an
object is
temperature
thermal energy is transferred from
hotter objects to colder objects
[3]
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12 About 66 million years ago, a giant asteroid hit the coast of Mexico.
Suggest two consequences of this asteroid collision.
1
2
[2]
13 In 1904, J. J. Thomson suggested a model of the structure of atoms.
This was called the plum pudding model.
Look at a diagram of the plum pudding model.
−
−
electron
−
−
−
−
−
positively charged space
(a) Write down one way that the plum pudding model is similar to the atomic model we
use today.
[1]
(b) Write down one way that the plum pudding model is different to the atomic model we
use today.
[1]
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16
14 The diagram shows some organisms in a forest.
grass
rabbit
wolf
not to scale
The rabbit eats grass.
The wolf eats rabbits.
(a) What happens to the wolf population if all of the rabbits die from a disease?
Give a reason for your answer.
population
reason
[1]
(b) Suggest two reasons why climate change may decrease the wolf population.
1
2
[2]
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17
15 Chen writes statements about nebulae.
Tick () all the statements that are correct about nebulae.
they are asteroids
they are giant clouds
they can act as stellar nurseries
they contain dust
they contain gas
[1]
16 Look at the information about the chemical formula of nitric acid, HNO3.
The chemical formula of nitric acid contains 1 atom of hydrogen, 1 atom of nitrogen and 3 atoms
of oxygen.
Look at the information about some other chemical formulas.
The chemical formula of:
• sodium oxide contains 2 atoms of sodium and 1 atom of oxygen.
• potassium sulfate contains 2 atoms of potassium, 1 atom of sulfur and 4 atoms of oxygen.
Write down the chemical formula of sodium oxide and the chemical formula of potassium sulfate.
sodium oxide
potassium sulfate
[2]
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BLANK PAGE
© Cambridge University Press & Assessment 2026
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been included, the publisher will be pleased to make amends at the earliest possible opportunity.
To avoid the issue of disclosure of answer-related information to candidates, all copyright acknowledgements are reproduced online in our Copyright
Acknowledgements Booklet. This is produced annually and is available to download at https://lowersecondary.cambridgeinternational.org/
Cambridge International Education is the name of our awarding body and part of Cambridge University Press & Assessment, which is a department of the University
of Cambridge.
© Cambridge University Press & Assessment 2026
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22
© Cambridge University Press & Assessment 2026
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40
38
Sr
strontium
88
56
Ba
barium
137
88
39
37
Rb
rubidium
85
55
Cs
caesium
133
87
actinoids
lanthanoids
–
calcium
potassium
–
actinoids
Ca
K
Ra
20
19
radium
89–103
24
23
Fr
104
57–71
magnesium
sodium
francium
178
89
Mg
Na
cerium
140
90
Th
thorium
232
lanthanum
139
89
Ac
actinium
–
231
protactinium
Pa
91
141
praseodymium
Pr
59
58
Ce
57
–
–
dubnium
Db
105
181
tantalum
Ta
73
93
niobium
Nb
41
51
vanadium
V
23
Cr
24
238
uranium
U
92
144
neodymium
Nd
60
–
seaborgium
Sg
106
184
tungsten
W
74
96
molybdenum
Mo
42
52
chromium
relative atomic mass
rutherfordium
Rf
hafnium
Hf
72
91
zirconium
Zr
40
48
titanium
La
lanthanoids
yttrium
Y
39
45
scandium
Ti
12
11
Sc
9
7
name
atomic symbol
Be
beryllium
Li
lithium
atomic number
4
3
Key
2
1
–
neptunium
Np
93
–
promethium
Pm
61
–
bohrium
Bh
107
186
rhenium
Re
75
–
technetium
Tc
43
55
manganese
Mn
25
–
plutonium
Pu
94
150
samarium
Sm
62
–
hassium
Hs
108
190
osmium
Os
76
101
ruthenium
Ru
44
56
iron
Fe
26
27
28
29
30
–
americium
Am
95
152
europium
Eu
63
–
meitnerium
Mt
109
192
–
curium
Cm
96
157
gadolinium
Gd
64
–
darmstadtium
Ds
110
195
platinum
Pt
Ir
iridium
78
106
palladium
Pd
46
59
nickel
Ni
77
103
rhodium
Rh
45
59
cobalt
Co
–
berkelium
Bk
97
159
terbium
Tb
65
–
roentgenium
Rg
111
197
gold
Au
79
108
silver
Ag
47
64
copper
Cu
–
californium
Cf
98
163
dysprosium
Dy
66
–
copernicium
Cn
112
201
mercury
Hg
80
112
cadmium
Cd
48
65
zinc
Zn
–
einsteinium
Es
99
165
holmium
Ho
67
–
nihonium
Nh
113
204
thallium
Tl
81
115
–
fermium
Fm
100
167
erbium
Er
68
–
flerovium
Fl
114
207
lead
Pb
82
119
tin
Sn
In
indium
50
73
germanium
Ge
32
28
silicon
Si
14
12
49
70
gallium
Ga
31
27
aluminium
Al
13
11
C
carbon
B
boron
6
–
mendelevium
Md
101
169
thulium
Tm
69
–
moscovium
Mc
115
209
bismuth
Bi
83
122
antimony
Sb
51
75
arsenic
As
33
31
phosphorus
P
15
14
nitrogen
N
7
–
nobelium
No
102
173
ytterbium
Yb
70
–
livermorium
Lv
116
–
polonium
Po
84
128
tellurium
Te
52
79
selenium
Se
34
32
sulfur
S
16
16
oxygen
O
8
–
lawrencium
Lr
103
175
lutetium
Lu
71
–
tennessine
Ts
117
–
astatine
At
85
127
iodine
I
53
80
bromine
Br
35
35.5
chlorine
Cl
17
19
fluorine
F
9
–
oganesson
Og
118
–
radon
Rn
86
131
xenon
Xe
54
84
krypton
Kr
36
40
argon
Ar
18
20
neon
Ne
10
4
5
helium
8
1
7
hydrogen
6
2
5
He
4
H
3
1
Group
The Periodic Table of Elements
20
0
