The smallest angular size that the instrument can resolve.
the angle subtended by one picture element (pixel) in a space camera. Usually measured in milli- or micro radian s. For comparison, the angular resolution of the human eye is about 3 milliradians.
In radar meteorology: 1) for point targets, the minimum angular separation at the antenna for which two targets at the same range can be distinguished; 2) for distributed targets, the minimum angular separation at the antenna for which distinct features (such as reflectivity cores) of the distributed targets can be distinguished. The angular resolution is usually taken to be the 3-dB beamwidth.
The resolution of a rotary encoder expressed as a portion of a circle (i.e. a resolution of 360 cycles per turn, is the same thing as an angular resolution of 1 degree)
The ability of an instrument, such as a telescope, to distinguish objects that are very close to each other. The angular resolution of an instrument is the smallest angular separation at which the instrument can observe two neighboring objects as two separate objects. The angular resolution of the human eye is about a minute of arc. As car headlights approach from a far-off point, they appear as a single light until the separation between the lights increases to a point where they can be resolved as two separate lights.
The angular size of the smallest detail of an astronomical object that can be distinguished with a telescope.
The ability of a telescope to distinguish between adjacent objects in the sky.
The ability of a telescope to distinguish two adjacent objects on the sky, or to study the fine details on the surface of some object; often synonymous with "clarity" or "sharpness."
Angular resolution describes the resolving power of any image forming device such as an optical or radio telescope, a microscope, a camera, or an eye.
