What is the scientific notation for 72,000?

To express a number in scientific notation, the goal is to represent it as a product of a number between 1 and 10 and a power of ten.

In the case of 72,000, we begin by identifying how to convert it correctly into this form. The number 72,000 can be written as 7.2 multiplied by 10 to some power. Moving the decimal point two places to the left transforms 72,000 into 7.2, which is a number between 1 and 10.

Since we moved the decimal point two places, we must compensate for that shift by multiplying by 10 raised to the power of 4 (10^4), because 10^4 equals 10,000, and multiplying 7.2 by 10^4 effectively returns it to 72,000.

Thus, the scientific notation for 72,000 is 7.2 x 10^4, accurately aligning with the requirements of scientific notation and confirming that this form represents the number correctly.