1. J.M. Gabrielse Convex Mirrors (curved out) Light rays that come in parallel to the principal axis reflect from the focal point. principal axis F The focal point is considered virtual since sight lines, not light rays, go through it.

2. J.M. Gabrielse Convex Mirrors The curved surface of a convex mirror causes light rays to travel away from each other, or diverge. The rays of light approaching the mirror, parallel to the principal axis, are reflected away from each other and will never meet. If you extend the rays behind the mirror, the extended rays will intersect at the focal point, F, behind the mirror.

3. J.M. Gabrielse Examples of Convex Mirrors Store mirrors allow employees to see vast areas of the store but the images are distorted. Street mirrors allow you to see large areas

4. J.M. Gabrielse Can You Think of Other Examples? Convex mirrors can also widen the view of traffic that can be seen in rear- view or side-view mirrors in: automobiles large trucks school buses.

5. J.M. Gabrielse Convex Mirror (example) principal axis F

6. J.M. Gabrielse Convex Mirror (example) principal axis F The first ray comes in parallel to the principal axis and reflects through the focal point.

7. J.M. Gabrielse Convex Mirror (example) principal axis F The first ray comes in parallel to the principal axis and reflects through the focal point. The second ray comes through the focal point and reflects parallel to the principal axis.

8. J.M. Gabrielse Convex Mirror (example) principal axis F The first ray comes in parallel to the principal axis and reflects through the focal point. The second ray comes through the focal point and reflects parallel to the principal axis.

9. J.M. Gabrielse Convex Mirror (example) principal axis F The first ray comes in parallel to the principal axis and reflects through the focal point. The second ray comes through the focal point and reflects parallel to the principal axis. The light rays don’t converge, but the sight lines do.

10. J.M. Gabrielse Convex Mirror (example) principal axis F The first ray comes in parallel to the principal axis and reflects through the focal point. The second ray comes through the focal point and reflects parallel to the principal axis. The light rays don’t converge, but the sight lines do. A virtual image forms where the sight lines converge.

11. J.M. Gabrielse principal axis Your Turn (Convex Mirror) F Note: mirrors are thin enough that you just draw a line to represent the mirror Locate the image of the arrow object convex mirror

12. J.M. Gabrielse principal axis Your Turn-Answer (Convex Mirror) F Note: mirrors are thin enough that you just draw a line to represent the mirror Locate the image of the arrow object convex mirror image

13. J.M. Gabrielse Characteristics of Convex Mirrors S The image is smaller than the object. P The image distance is smaller than the object distance. O The image is upright. T The image is virtual ( object's image lies behind the mirror).

14. J.M. Gabrielse Interactive Activity Explores how moving the object farther away from the mirror's surface affects the size of the virtual image formed behind the mirror. http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/java/mi rrors/convexmirrors/index.htmlhttp://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/java/mi rrors/convexmirrors/index.html See the 3-D version: http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/java/mi rrors/convexmirrors3d/index.htmlhttp://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/java/mi rrors/convexmirrors3d/index.html