Helping the Moon take a selfie

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

It is a fundamental result of introductory optics that a plane mirror must be at least one half of your height if you want to see your entire body. Students are commonly confused about whether this is still true as you back very far away from the mirror. An interesting student question proposed that we observe the Moon's image in a small makeup mirror. If someone on the Moon had a telescope large enough to see you and your surroundings clearly, would that person also be able to peer over your shoulder and see the entire Moon in your mirror, as you do? The answer provides a useful 'view' on mirror reflections.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)486-488
Number of pages3
JournalPhysics Education
Volume49
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 1 2014

Scopus Subject Areas

  • Education
  • General Physics and Astronomy

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