Astronomers measure large distances in light-years. One light-year is the distance that light can travel in one year, or approximately
5.88*10^2 miles. Suppose a star is 9.8*10^1
light-years from Earth. In scientific notation, approximately how many miles is it?
To convert 9.8*10^1 light-years to miles, we can multiply it by the conversion factor of 5.88*10^12 miles per light-year:
9.8*10^1 light-years * 5.88*10^12 miles/light-year = (9.8 * 5.88) * 10^(1 + 12) miles
= 57.744 * 10^13 miles
= 5.7744 * 10^14 miles
Therefore, the star is approximately 5.7744 * 10^14 miles away from Earth.