Eli5 why are you able to see lights far away but the light it projects doesn’t go nearly as far? (Car lights, street lights, etc)

Question

Eli5 why are you able to see lights far away but the light it projects doesn’t go nearly as far? (Car lights, street lights, etc)

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Answer 1

Let me see if I understand what you’re asking, because the question is awkwardly phrased:

Are you asking why we can see the light shining from far away (like seeing car lights from far away), but can’t see things illuminated by the same light just as well (like when driving)?