Photometric-standard star

Okay, kiddo, let's talk about stars and how we use them to measure the brightness of other stars. Scientists use a special type of star called a photometric-standard star as a reference point for how bright other stars are.

Think of it like this: if you were trying to figure out how tall something is, you might use a measuring tape to compare it to something you know the height of, like a chair or a door frame. The photometric-standard star is like that chair or door frame - it's a star that astronomers have measured very carefully and know exactly how bright it is.

When they want to measure the brightness of another star, they compare it to the brightness of the photometric-standard star. It's like holding the measuring tape up to the object to see how it sizes up against the known height. By comparing how much dimmer or brighter the other star is compared to the photometric-standard star, scientists can figure out how bright that star is.

This is important because knowing how bright a star is can tell us things like how far away it is or what type of star it is. So, even though a photometric-standard star might not be the most exciting star to look at, it helps scientists learn all sorts of cool stuff about the universe!