Science (086) — AI-generated practice question

When an object is placed between the pole (P) and the principal focus (F) of a concave mirror, the two reflected rays — one parallel to the principal axis and one passing through/directed toward the centre of curvature — diverge after reflection. These diverging rays do not meet in front of the mirror; they only appear to meet behind the mirror when extended backwards.

Since the reflected rays are diverging, no real point of intersection exists in front of the mirror. The image formed is virtual, erect, and enlarged, located behind the mirror. A screen can only catch a real image (where rays actually meet); because this image is virtual, it cannot be caught on a screen.

Source: Chapter 9, Section 9.2.1 & 9.2.2; Table 9.1

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• The key idea examiners want: diverging reflected rays → virtual image → cannot be caught on screen.
• Mention the ray diagram rules briefly (how the two standard rays behave) to justify why rays diverge.
• Table 9.1 confirms: object between P and F → image is virtual and erect, behind the mirror.
• A real image forms where rays actually converge; a virtual image forms where rays only appear to converge (behind the mirror), so no screen can catch it.
• Always use the terms virtual, behind the mirror, and diverging rays — these are the scoring keywords.