Q: How is the number 1,285,438 written in Scientific Notation?

 A: 1.285438 x 106

Why is 1,285,438 written as 1.285438 x 106 in scientific notation?

The purpose of scientific notation is for scientists to write very large, or very small, numbers with ease.

Calculating scientific notation for a positive integer is simple, as it always follows this notation:

a x 10b

Follow the steps below to see how 1,285,438 is written in scientific notation.

Step 1

To find a, take the number and move a decimal place to the right one position.

  • Original Number: 1,285,438
  • New Number: 1.285438

Step 2

Now, to find b, count how many places to the right of the decimal.

New Number: 1.285438
Decimal Count: 123456

There are 6 places to the right of the decimal place.

Step 3

Building upon what we know above, we can now reconstruct the number into scientific notation.

Remember, the notation is: a x 10b

a = 1.285438

b = 6

Now the whole thing:

1.285438 x 106

Step 4

Check your work:

106 = 1,000,000 x 1.285438 = 1,285,438


More Scientific Notation Examples

1,285,4361,285,4371,285,4391,285,440
1.285436 x 1061.285437 x 1061.285439 x 1061.28544 x 106

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