Before revision: 250px|Polishing and figuring of the Hubble Space Telescope's primary mirror Figuring is the process of final polishing of an optical surface to remove imperfections or modify the surface curvature to achieve the shape required for a given application.The Photographic times, page 18, Volume 38 - 1906 Types of figuring An example of figuring is that used in reflecting telescope primary mirrors in a process of converting the smooth spherical mirror produced by earlier stages into the aspherical or parabolic shapes needed to form the correct image.
After revision: 250px|Polishing and figuring of the Hubble Space Telescope's primary mirror Figuring is the process of final polishing of an optical surface to remove imperfections or modify the surface curvature to achieve the shape required for a given application.The Photographic times, page 18, Volume 38 - 1906 Types An example of figuring is that used in reflecting telescope primary mirrors in a process of converting the smooth spherical mirror produced by earlier stages into the aspherical or parabolic shapes needed to form the correct image.