Scientific Notation Converter
Scientific notation writes a number as a value between 1 and 10 times a power of ten — the compact way to handle the very large and the very small. Enter a number to convert it.
Your numbers
Result
- Mantissa
- 1.23
- Exponent
- 4
| Step | Detail |
|---|---|
| Number | 12345 |
| Mantissa (1 ≤ |a| < 10) | 1.2345 |
| Exponent | 4 |
| Scientific notation | 1.2345 × 10^4 |
How scientific notation works
A number is written as a × 10^b, where the mantissa a sits between 1 and 10 and the exponent b counts how far the decimal point moved. 12,345 = 1.2345 × 10^4. A positive exponent means a large number; a negative one means a small fraction: 0.00056 = 5.6 × 10^−4.
Why it is used
It keeps otherwise unwieldy numbers readable and comparable. The distance to the Sun is 1.496 × 10^11 m; the mass of an electron is 9.109 × 10^−31 kg. Writing those in full would be error-prone — the exponent alone tells you the scale at a glance.
Scientific vs engineering notation
Scientific notation keeps the mantissa between 1 and 10. Engineering notation restricts the exponent to multiples of 3 (so it lines up with kilo, mega, milli, micro), which is handier in electronics. This converter gives the standard scientific form.
Frequently asked questions
Sources
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