How Do You Calculate the Image Distance and Diameter Using a Spherical Mirror?

  • Thread starter Thread starter qman
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Optics
Click For Summary
To calculate the image distance and diameter using a concave spherical mirror with a 5-meter radius of curvature, first determine the focal length, which is 2.5 meters. Given the sun's distance of 150 million kilometers and its angular size of 0.5 degrees, apply the thin lens equation to find the image distance. The image diameter can be calculated using the magnification formula, which relates the angular size of the sun to the distance from the mirror. This approach allows for accurate determination of both the position and size of the sun's image.
qman
Messages
1
Reaction score
0
taking that the sun is 150 million km's away, the keck telescope has a reflective surface with a 5 metre radius of curvature. if the disk of the sun subtends to an angle of 0.5 degree at the earth, adn assuming that the mirror is concae spherically what are the position and diameter of the image of the sun.

so yeah basicall i need a) image distance frlom the mirror
and b) image diameter

please help in any way u can asap as the question is due today :$
 
Physics news on Phys.org
qman said:
taking that the sun is 150 million km's away, the keck telescope has a reflective surface with a 5 metre radius of curvature. if the disk of the sun subtends to an angle of 0.5 degree at the earth, adn assuming that the mirror is concae spherically what are the position and diameter of the image of the sun.

so yeah basicall i need a) image distance frlom the mirror
and b) image diameter
A spherical mirror can be thought of as a thin lens except that the light reflects backward instead of going through it.

The focal length of a spherical mirror is approximately the same as that of a parabola. Work the focal length of a circle (y+r)^2 + x^2 = r^2 that is approximately equal to a parabola: x^2 = 4py where p is the focal length of the parabola. The approximation of a parabola to a circle is where y is very small.

Use the thin lens equation to work out the image distance from the object distance and focal length:

\frac{1}{O} + \frac{1}{f} = \frac{1}{i}

What is the magnification?

AM
 
Last edited:

Similar threads

Replies
4
Views
2K
Replies
1
Views
5K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
2K
Replies
1
Views
3K
Replies
4
Views
3K
Replies
3
Views
5K
Replies
2
Views
3K
Replies
3
Views
5K
Replies
9
Views
22K
  • · Replies 7 ·
Replies
7
Views
6K