Find the number of decibels for the power of the sound given. Round to the nearest decibel.

A rocket engine,
2.42 cross 10−5
watts/cm2

so, how many watts per decibel?

Divide that into 2.42*10^-5

what's this "cross"? Can't you say "times", or use the multiplication symbol?

thank you Steve it is appreciated

To find the number of decibels (dB) for the power of the sound given, we can use the formula:

dB = 10 * log10(P / P0)

Where:
- P is the power of the sound in watts/cm^2
- P0 is the reference power level, typically set as 10^(-12) watts/cm^2

Given that P = 2.42 * 10^(-5) watts/cm^2, we can substitute these values into the formula:

dB = 10 * log10(2.42 * 10^(-5) / 10^(-12))

Simplifying further:

dB = 10 * log10(2.42 * 10^7)

Now, we can calculate the value using a scientific calculator or an online calculator:

dB = 10 * 7.384285402

dB ≈ 73.84

Rounding to the nearest decibel, the number of decibels for the power of the sound is approximately 74 dB.