Question

The ratio of brightness of two stars can be determined by a constant of 2.512 raised to the power of the magnitude difference. The formula
b1

b2
= 2.512(m2 − m1) where b1 and b2 represent the brightness and m1 and m2 refer to the magnitudes of the stars being compared. One star has a magnitude of 0.2, and another star has a magnitude of 2.2. What is the ratio of brightness of these two stars?

Answer 1

Answer: 6.3

Explanation:

The ratio of brightness of two stars is given by:

$\frac{b_1}{b_2}=2.512^{(m_{2}-m_{1})}$

Where:

$b_1$ is the brightness of star 1

$b_2$ is the brightness of star 2

$m_{1}=0.2$ is the magnitude of star 1

$m_{2}=2.2$ is the magnitude of star 2

$\frac{b_1}{b_2}=2.512^{(2.2-0.2)}$

$\frac{b_1}{b_2}=2.512^{2}$

Finally:

$\frac{b_1}{b_2}=6.3$ This is the ratio of brightness