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The angular diameter, angular size, apparent diameter, or apparent size is an angular separation (in units of angle) describing how large a sphere or circle appears from a given point of view. In the vision sciences , it is called the visual angle , and in optics , it is the angular aperture (of a lens ).
In astronomy the term apparent size refers to the physical angle or angular diameter. But in psychophysics and experimental psychology the adjective "apparent" refers to a person's subjective experience. So, "apparent size" has referred to how large an object looks, also often called its "perceived size".
The angular size redshift relation for a Lambda cosmology, with on the vertical scale megaparsecs. The angular size redshift relation describes the relation between the angular size observed on the sky of an object of given physical size, and the object's redshift from Earth (which is related to its distance, , from Earth
Angular distance or angular separation is the measure of the angle between the orientation of two straight lines, rays, or vectors in three-dimensional space, or the central angle subtended by the radii through two points on a sphere.
Observing a nearby small object without a magnifying glass or a microscope, the size of the object depends on the viewing distance. Under normal lighting conditions (light source ~ 1000 lumens at height 600–700 mm, viewing angle ~ 35 degrees) the angular size recognized by naked eye will be round 1 arc minute = 1/60 degrees = 0.0003 radians. [1]
A standard ruler is an astronomical object for which the actual physical size is known. By measuring its angular size in the sky, one can use simple trigonometry to determine its distance from Earth. In simple terms, this is because objects of a fixed size appear smaller the further away they are.
Astronomers also measure objects' apparent size as an angular diameter. For example, the full moon has an angular diameter of approximately 0.5° when viewed from Earth. One could say, "The Moon's diameter subtends an angle of half a degree." The small-angle formula can convert such an angular measurement into a distance/size ratio.
Solid angles can also be measured in squares of angular measures such as degrees, minutes, and seconds. A small object nearby may subtend the same solid angle as a larger object farther away. For example, although the Moon is much smaller than the Sun, it is also much closer to Earth. Indeed, as viewed from any point on Earth, both objects have ...