2 A population is \(P\) million at time \(t\) years. \(P\) is modelled by the equation $$P = 5 + a \mathrm { e } ^ { - b t }$$ where \(a\) and \(b\) are constants.
The population is initially 8 million, and declines to 6 million after 1 year.

1. Use this information to calculate the values of \(a\) and \(b\), giving \(b\) correct to 3 significant figures.
2. What is the long-term population predicted by the model?