Apparent height of an object a fixed distance away

$\begingroup$

So, if I have an object which is, say 3m tall, and it is for example 10m away from where I am standing, how tall would the object appear to be?

Objects appear to shrink as they move away from the observer. I am trying to find the formula to calculate this.

Please leave angles as degrees, and measurements as metric.

The observer is a human, and the object is being observed from the human's eye

Any help would be much appreciated.

$\endgroup$ 1

1 Answer

$\begingroup$

If your eye is at ground level and you draw a right triangle from your eye to the object, the angle it subtends is $$\arctan \frac {\text {height}}{\text{distance}}$$ If your eye is at the level of some point in the middle of the object you have one angle above the plane of your eye and another below. Nothing gives an apparent height unless you have an estimate of the distance.

$\endgroup$

Your Answer

Sign up or log in

Sign up using Google Sign up using Facebook Sign up using Email and Password Submit

Post as a guest

Post Your Answer Discard

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy