Mercury is 0.4 AU from the Sun.How does the flux of sunlight for Mercury compare to the flux of sunlight for the Earth?
A)Earth's is 2.5 times as large
B)Mercury's is 2.5 times as large
C)Earth's is 6.25 times as large.
D)Mercury's is 6.25 times as large

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Flux of sunlight is inversely proportional to the square of the distance between the planet and the Sun. Since Mercury is at 0.4 AU, the ratio of the flux of sunlight for Mercury compared to Earth would be (1/0.4)^2 = 6.25, which means Mercury receives 6.25 times more sunlight per unit area than Earth.

Mercury Is 0