Question

Which statement is the best interpretation of the ray diagram shown below?A. A concave lens forming a smaller, real imageB. A concave mirror forming a smaller, real imageC. A concave mirror forming a smaller, virtual imageD. A concave lens forming a smaller, virtual image

Answer 1

It's B. A concave mirror forming a smaller, real image.

Step-by-step explanation:

The other user ended up being correct on the CST for me. However, let me explain why.

First, we know that the answer choices containing "concave lens" are wrong, as concave lenses are parallelograms, not the shape that is shown in the image. Then, we know that the image formed by the mirror has to be real, because the object is further away from the mirror than the focal point in the center. For those reasons, answer choice B is correct, and the image shows a concave MIRROR forming a smaller, REAL image.

Answer 2

From the diagram we notice that this is a mirror; this comes from the fact that the rays are reflecting.

Now that we know that this is a mirror we have to notice that this is a concave mirror.

Now we have to notice that the object is placed beyond the center of the curvature (the red dot) and we need to remember that when this happens the image formed is real, inverted and diminished.

Therefore this a concave mirror forming a smaller, real image. And the answer is B.