The Amazon River release 5.5 * 10 to the 7th power gallons of water into the Atlantic Ocean every second. There are about 3.2 * 10 ^ 7 seconds in a year how many gallons are released into the ocean in one year express your answer with the approximate number of significant digits
To find the number of gallons released into the ocean in one year, multiply the volume of water released per second (5.5 * 10^7 gallons) by the number of seconds in a year (3.2 * 10^7 seconds):
(5.5 * 10^7 gallons/second) * (3.2 * 10^7 seconds) = 17.6 * 10^14 gallons.
Rounding to the appropriate significant figures, the approximate number of gallons released into the ocean in one year is:
1.8 * 10^15 gallons.