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The natural moon illusion: a multifactor angular account

C Plug1, H E Ross

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of South Africa, Pretoria.

Perception
|January 1, 1994
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

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The moon illusion, a perceived size increase of celestial objects near the horizon, stems from conceptual errors and overlooked evidence. This study explains it as a combination of visual factors influencing perceived angular size.

Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Vision Science
  • Perceptual Psychology

Background:

  • The celestial illusion, specifically the moon illusion, remains incompletely explained.
  • Existing explanations often suffer from conceptual confusion regarding perceived size and overlook crucial observational data.
  • The natural moon illusion involves a perceived angular size enlargement of horizon objects compared to elevated ones.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To clarify the conceptual basis of the moon illusion.
  • To analyze observational evidence concerning the perceived angular size of horizon versus elevated objects.
  • To identify and assess the contributing factors to the moon illusion.

Main Methods:

  • Review of observational evidence on the moon illusion.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Analysis of measurements of perceived angular size.
  • Assessment of proposed explanatory factors including size contrast, vergence, eye/head position, aerial perspective, and color.

    • Main Results:

    • The moon illusion involves a perceived angular size enlargement of horizon objects by a factor of 1.5-2.0 in diameter.
    • Measurements predominantly use angular size, though some theories assume linear size illusion.
    • Illusion magnitude varies with horizon scene detail.

    Conclusions:

    • The failure to explain the moon illusion arises from conceptual confusion and disregard for observational evidence.
    • The illusion is explained as the sum of multiple factors influencing perceived angular size.
    • The relative contributions of these factors (size contrast, vergence, eye/head position, aerial perspective, color) are evaluated.