What image does a convex mirror form?

What image does a convex mirror form?

• A. Larger and closer
• B. Upright and same size
• C. Smaller and farther away
• D. Real and inverted

Answer: (C)

When light hits a convex mirror, the reflected rays spread apart, so no real image forms in front of the mirror. If you trace the rays backward, they appear to diverge from a point behind the mirror. That image is smaller than the object (the magnification is less than one) and, because it seems to come from behind the mirror, it looks farther away than the actual object. So the image produced is smaller and farther away. This type of mirror never creates a real, inverted image, and it is not the same size as the object.

When light hits a convex mirror, the reflected rays spread apart, so no real image forms in front of the mirror. If you trace the rays backward, they appear to diverge from a point behind the mirror. That image is smaller than the object (the magnification is less than one) and, because it seems to come from behind the mirror, it looks farther away than the actual object. So the image produced is smaller and farther away. This type of mirror never creates a real, inverted image, and it is not the same size as the object.