What is ** in python?

In Python, the ** symbol is used as the exponentiation operator to raise a number to a power. It is a binary operator, meaning it requires two operands - the number to be raised and the power it should be raised to.

For example, in the expression 2 ** 3, the base number is 2 and the exponent is 3, resulting in 2 raised to the power of 3, which equals 8.

The ** operator can also be used with negative numbers as well as floating-point numbers. For example, 2 ** -3 would result in 0.125, and 2.5 ** 2 would result in 6.25.

It is important to note that the ** operator has higher precedence than most other arithmetic operators, meaning it will be evaluated before addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division operations in an expression.

Overall, the ** operator is a useful tool in Python for performing exponentiation and calculating powers.