magnifying power

magnifying power

(magnification) The angle subtended by the image of an object seen through a telescope, divided by the angle subtended by the same object seen without telescopic aid. Where the object is too small or too distant to be resolved, the magnifying power may be calculated from the ratio of the focal lengths of the objective (or primary mirror) and eyepiece, or from the aperture divided by the diameter of the exit pupil.

magnifying power

[′mag·nə‚fī·iŋ ‚pau̇·ər] (optics) The ratio of the tangent of the angle subtended at the eye by an image formed by an optical system, to the tangent of the angle subtended at the eye by the corresponding object at a distance for convenient viewing.