Physics basics
New to physics? Start here. Ten short lessons with pictures that build up from first principles, in the order that makes the most sense. No experience needed, and every lesson ends with a few questions to check yourself.
Your learning path
About 47 minutes in total
What is physics? You already know some
Physics is the science of how everything moves, changes and works. Start here if you are brand new.
Measuring the world: metres, kilograms and seconds
Scientists use numbers and units to describe things. Meet the three units you will use all the time.
Speed, distance and time
How fast is fast? Learn the one simple rule that links speed, distance and time.
Forces: pushes and pulls
Every time something starts moving, stops, or changes direction, a force is at work. See how forces balance.
What is gravity?
Why things fall, why you stay on the ground, and why a feather and a hammer fall together on the Moon.
Friction: the grabby force
Why things slow down and stop, why shoes grip, and why rubbing your hands together makes them warm.
Why things keep moving: inertia
Why you lurch forward when a bus brakes, and the first of Newton’s three laws of motion.
Push harder, go faster: force, mass and acceleration
Why an empty shopping trolley speeds up faster than a full one. Newton’s second law in plain words.
Every push has a push back
How a balloon rocket works, why you slide backwards when you push a wall on ice, and Newton’s third law.
What is energy?
Energy is what makes things happen. Meet its forms, and see how it changes from one to another.
Then play
Try the ideas in a game.
Launch Lab
Land the ball on the pad by changing angle and speed. Six missions on Earth, the Moon, Mars and Jupiter.
Play now →GameOrbit Keeper
Find the launch speed that keeps a satellite circling a planet instead of crashing or flying away. Six missions from the Space Station to Mars.
Play now →GameCircuit Rescue
Wire batteries, switches and bulbs to power up a dark spaceship. Find out why some bulbs glow dim and others shine bright.
Play now →GameMarble Machine
Build a marble run from ramps and loops and watch an energy bar show height turning into speed. Five missions, from a simple slope to a grand finale.
Play now →