Q: How is the number 517,781,342 written in Scientific Notation?

 A: 5.17781342 x 108

Why is 517,781,342 written as 5.17781342 x 108 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 517,781,342 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: 517,781,342
  • New Number: 5.17781342

Step 2

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

New Number: 5.17781342
Decimal Count: 12345678

There are 8 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 = 5.17781342

b = 8

Now the whole thing:

5.17781342 x 108

Step 4

Check your work:

108 = 100,000,000 x 5.17781342 = 517,781,342


More Scientific Notation Examples

517,781,340517,781,341517,781,343517,781,344
5.1778134 x 1085.17781341 x 1085.17781343 x 1085.17781344 x 108

Explore more about the number 517,781,342:


Ask a Question