Ameasure of the amount of the light given off by a star is its a. apparent magnitude c. position in space b. absolute magnitude d. size

The correct answer is

b. absolute magnitude

In fact, the absolute magnitude of a star is the measure of its intrinsec brightness, so it is a measure of the amount of light given off by the star. On the contrary, the apparent magnitude of the star takes also into account the distance from the star, so it relates the brightness of the star to the distance at which we are observing it. For instance, a star A with larger absolute magnitude than star B can have smaller apparent magnitude than star B if it is very far away from us (in fact, star A will appear less bright due to its very large distance).

Option (b) is correct. The amount of light given by a star is called as the absolute magnitude of the star.

Explanation:

The star is considered to be the source of energy in different forms for all the planets that are moving around it. The amount of the star emitted by a planet that is far away from the earth is determined as the absolute or the apparent magnitude.

The absolute magnitude of the star is the amount of light emitted by the star. But the brightness of the star depends on the distance of the star from the observer because there is a loss of huge amount of light as it travels through the space.

The light or the brightness of the star as observed by an observer at a very large distance from the star is termed as the apparent magnitude of the star. The measure of the light given by the star does not depend on the size of the star.

Thus, Option (b) is correct. The amount of light given by a star is called as the absolute magnitude of the star.

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Answer Details:

Grade: High School

Subject: Physics

Chapter: Astronomy

Keywords:

measure, amount, light, brightness, energy, size, absolute, apparent, magnitude, star, observer, distance, given off.