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By Lawrence, AP Content Analyst at AllSatPapers · Cross-year archive: 2022, 2024, 2025 (U.S. & International), 2026 (U.S. & International–Asia)
The 2026 AP Physics 1 International exam — the Asia-version paper, whose free-response section carries the code "Version L" — is the most fluids-heavy Physics 1 paper in our archive: six fluids multiple-choice questions (Q5, 9, 14, 23, 30, 33) plus a full fluids free-response question (FRQ 3). For a unit that did not exist on this exam before 2025, that is a remarkable statement about where the College Board has taken the redesigned course.
Two more findings from our cross-year comparison of real AP Physics 1 past papers: (1) rotation is once again the heaviest topic — seven MCQ (Q2, 10, 20, 24, 28, 36, 38) and the marquee FRQ 1, a disk-string-block derivation whose archived scoring notes work through the solution down to a = 2g/3; and (2) the International paper is built from the same blueprint and the same item families as the 2026 U.S. paper, right down to a relative-motion-on-a-train question (Q16) that mirrors the 2025 U.S. item 1251 almost scenario-for-scenario. If you are searching for AP Physics 1 practice questions that actually resemble what International students faced in May 2026, this breakdown — built from the actual paper — is the place to start.
| Paper | Section I | Section II | Fluids footprint |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 International (old format) | 50 MCQ / 90 min (last 5 multi-select, "select two answers") | 5 FRQ / 90 min | Zero fluids items |
| 2025 International | 40 MCQ / ~80 min | 4 FRQ / ~100 min | 5 MCQ (3334, 3345, 3354, 3360, 3368) + FRQ 3375 (fluid-density experiment) |
| 2026 International–Asia | 40 MCQ / ~80 min | 4 FRQ / ~100 min (Version L) | 6 MCQ (5, 9, 14, 23, 30, 33) + FRQ 3 |
Topic map of the 2026 Asia paper, by question number: rotation/angular momentum (2, 10, 20, 24, 28, 36, 38 + FRQ 1), fluids (5, 9, 14, 23, 30, 33 + FRQ 3), energy/work (13, 15, 22, 39 + FRQ 2), momentum/impulse (8, 12, 21, 31, 32, 37 + FRQ 4), SHM (3, 17, 34 + FRQ 2), kinematics/projectiles (4, 16, 19, 40), gravitation/circular motion (1, 6, 18), and friction/dynamics (7, 11, 25, 26, 27, 29, 35).
Here are the first two questions of the 2026 International–Asia exam, quoted verbatim from the paper, with our expert analysis of each.
"Which of the following claims regarding the magnitude a of the acceleration of the car is correct? (A car travels along the curved path shown; Points A and B are marked on the curve.)
A. a is greater at Point A than at Point B.
B. a is greater at Point B than at Point A.
C. a is constant and zero.
D. a is constant and nonzero."
What it tests and why it's tricky: this is a conceptual circular-motion item with no numbers at all — pure vector reasoning. Opening the paper with it sends a message the whole 2026 paper reinforces: direction and curvature are physics, not decoration. The same skill reappears at Q37 (impulse direction change of a ball) and in the FRQ 4 collision vectors.
"In Scenario 1, a disk with rotational inertia I1 about its central axle rotates with constant angular speed. The magnitude of the angular momentum of the disk about its axle is L1.
In Scenario 2, a different disk, with rotational inertia 2I1 about its central axle, rotates with the same constant angular speed as the disk in Scenario 1.
Which expression is equal to the magnitude of the angular momentum of the disk in Scenario 2 about its axle?
A. ½L1 B. L1 C. 2L1 D. 4L1"
What it signals: an L = Iω scaling question at Q2 — and the "In Scenario 1… In Scenario 2…" framing, which appears five more times on this paper alone (Q3, 22, 32, plus both scenario-based FRQ parts). Scenario framing is the new format's default dialect. The U.S. version opened with SHM energy and rotational inertia at Q1–Q2; the International version opens with circular motion and angular momentum. Different items, identical blueprint: rotation at the front of the paper, three years running.
Pattern 1 — Fluids went from zero to anchor in one redesign cycle. Our archived 2022 International paper contains not a single fluids question. In 2025 the International paper introduced five (pressure orientations 3334, buoyancy densities 3345, continuity 3354, gauge pressure 3360, Torricelli efflux 3368) plus the fluid-density experimental FRQ 3375. In 2026 the Asia paper carries six MCQ and FRQ 3 — a vertical-pipe/nozzle experiment combining continuity, Bernoulli-style reasoning, and projectile motion. Every recurring fluids subtype in the redesign is on this one paper.
Pattern 2 — The FRQ archetypes are identical across versions and years. The 2026 Asia free-response set maps one-to-one onto the four new-format archetypes we documented from 2025: quantitative graphing/derivation (FRQ 2: bar charts + derive k from conservation of energy), experimental design with a linear graph (FRQ 3: measure nozzle radius r and jet height H, graph H vs. 1/r4), qualitative paragraph justification (FRQ 1 Part B: compare angular accelerations "using qualitative reasoning beyond mathematical derivations or expressions"), and a conservation/impulse comparison (FRQ 4: compare impulses J1 vs. J2 when Block A sticks to heavier targets).
Pattern 3 — Rubric wording is copy-paste stable, across oceans and years. The 2025 International FRQ 3374 told students to "draw and label the forces (not components)… each force as a distinct arrow starting on, and pointing away from, the point at which the force is exerted." The 2026 Asia FRQ 1 Part A i uses the same instruction nearly word for word — which itself descends from 2022 FRQ 1(a) and 2024 U.S. FRQ 3(a). The derivation boilerplate ("Begin your derivation by writing a fundamental physics principle or an equation from the reference information") appears in 2025 U.S. 1254/1257, 2026 U.S. FRQ 41/42/44, and 2026 Asia FRQ 1/2/4 alike.
| Year | Question | Topic | Difficulty | Pattern observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Asia | Q5, Q14 | Fluids: buoyancy (submerged block, string tension) | Medium | Buoyancy subtype also at 2025 Intl 3345 and 2026 U.S. Q10 |
| 2026 Asia | Q23 | Fluids: continuity, volume flow rate | Easy | Same skill as 2025 Intl 3354 (d → d/3) and 2025 U.S. 1248 = 2026 U.S. Q35 |
| 2026 Asia | Q33 | Fluids: Torricelli efflux speed | Medium | Mirrors 2025 Intl 3368 (24 m tank, hole 4 m up) |
| 2026 Asia | Q16 | Kinematics: relative velocity, students in a train | Medium | Frames-of-reference item every year — see 2025 U.S. 1251 |
| 2025 Intl → 2026 Asia | 3374 → FRQ 1 Ai | Rotation: force diagram rubric | Medium | "Draw and label the forces (not components)" wording identical |
| 2024 Asia | Q38 | Statics: Atwood machine on double incline (37°/53°) | Hard | Force-at-angle family persists at 2026 Asia Q29 |
| 2022 Intl | FRQ 2 | Experimental design: rotation lab | Hard | Same archetype as 2026 Asia FRQ 3 (fluids experiment) |
| 2026 Asia | FRQ 1 | Rotation: disk-string-block derivation | Hard | Archived solution derives a = 2g/3; boilerplate matches 2025 U.S. 1254 |
"Fluid flows to the right in a horizontal pipe. The diameter of the pipe at Point X is greater than the diameter of the pipe at Point Y, as shown. The volume flow rates of the fluid at Points X and Y are QX and QY, respectively.
Which of the following correctly compares QX and QY?
A. QX > QY B. QX < QY C. QX = QY D. QX and QY cannot be compared without knowing the ratio of the radii in the sections of the pipe."
Analysis: compare this with 2025 International 3354 (pipe narrows from d to d/3 — fluid speed becomes 9v) and the 2026 U.S. Q35 square-to-circle pipe. The College Board rotates the surface features — speed vs. flow rate, numeric vs. symbolic — but continuity itself is non-negotiable. Expect one continuity item on every new-format paper.
"The top of a container is open to the atmosphere. The container is filled with water of density 1000 kg/m3. The atmospheric pressure at the top of the container is 1.0 × 105 N/m2. The absolute pressure at the bottom of the container is 1.15 × 105 N/m2.
What is the approximate height of the water in the container?
A. 1.5 m B. 10 m C. 12 m D. 22 m"
Analysis: this is the exact sibling of the 2026 U.S. Q24 gauge-pressure item (2.0 × 104 Pa in a 900 kg/m3 fluid → 2.2 m) — which was itself carried over from 2025 U.S. 1238. One formula, P = ρgh, is now responsible for at least one MCQ on every new-format paper we hold. Learn the absolute-vs-gauge distinction cold; it is the single most-trapped fluids point on the exam.
"A uniform disk of mass M0 and radius R0 is free to rotate about an axle perpendicular to the plane of the disk and through the center of the disk, as shown in Figure 1. The rotational inertia of the disk about its axle is I = ½M0R02. One end of a string is attached to the edge of the disk and wrapped several times around the edge of the disk. The other end of the string is attached to a block of mass M0. The block is released from rest. The string does not slip as the block accelerates down.
Part A i. The circle in Figure 2 represents the disk. Draw and label arrows that represent the forces (not components) that are exerted on the disk. Each force must be represented by a distinct arrow starting on, and pointing away from, the point at which the force is exerted."
Analysis: this is the hardest FRQ on the paper and the most instructive. Part A i earns a point for a three-arrow force diagram under the same rubric language used since 2022; Part A ii is a full two-object rotation derivation launched by the mandatory "fundamental physics principle" line; Part B swaps the hanging block for a direct downward force of magnitude M0g and demands a qualitative comparison of angular accelerations. One question, three archetypes. Students who had practiced 2025 International 3374 (bead-rod system, same force-diagram wording, same α derivation) walked into this question already knowing its shape.
"On the rectangle in Figure 2, which represents the rod, draw and label the forces (not components) exerted on the rod immediately after the system has been released from rest but while the rod is still horizontal. Draw each force as a distinct arrow starting on, and pointing away from, the point at which the force is exerted on the rod."
Analysis: place 3374 next to 2026 FRQ 1 and the family resemblance is unmistakable: a released-from-rest rotational system, a force diagram first, an angular-acceleration derivation second, a qualitative justification last. This is why we tell students to study FRQs as forms, not as isolated questions — the forms repeat even when the surface story changes.
Predicted difficulty: the 2026 International paper is calibrated to the same level as the U.S. version — our archive shows no systematic difficulty gap between versions within a year, only different item pools and numbers. The sting is concentrated in the rotation FRQ 1, the elliptical-orbit potential-energy ratio at Q6, and the dropped two-block string system at Q35.
Priority topics for International students, by observed weight on this paper:
Study hacks grounded in the evidence:
The 2026 International Physics 1 paper confirms everything the 2025 redesign promised: a stable 40 + 4 structure, fluids as a permanent and substantial block, rotation as the exam's center of gravity, and free-response questions built from four recurring archetypes with rubric language that has not changed in four years. None of this is guesswork — every claim above is tied to a question number on a real paper. And that is precisely the point: the students who prepared with authentic past papers recognized the continuity item, knew the force-diagram rubric before reading it, and had already written a derivation that begins with a fundamental principle dozens of times. The patterns repeat. The realest practice is the real papers. You have time to build that familiarity — start today.
Real 2022–2026 U.S. & International papers · full MCQ + FRQ sets · including the 2026 "Version L" paper analyzed above.
Meta description: Deep analysis of the 2026 AP Physics 1 International (Asia) exam — real sample questions, Version L FRQ breakdown, six-question fluids block, rotation weighting, and cross-year patterns from 2022–2026 authentic AP Physics 1 past papers.
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