Scientific Notation
Convert to/from scientific notation and perform operations
How to use Scientific Notation
- 1Type the number you want to convert into the input field.
- 2Choose convert to scientific notation, or from scientific notation to decimal.
- 3Copy the formatted result with its exponent and mantissa.
What Is Scientific Notation?
a × 10ⁿ where 1 ≤ |a| < 10Scientific notation writes numbers as a coefficient between 1 and 10 multiplied by a power of ten. It makes very large or very small values compact and easy to read.
It is widely used in science, engineering, and computing to handle values like the speed of light or atomic scales without long strings of zeros.
Frequently asked questions
What is the mantissa and the exponent?
The mantissa is the coefficient (the number between 1 and 10) and the exponent is the power of ten that scales it up or down.
How do I convert a decimal to scientific notation?
Move the decimal point so there is one non-zero digit to its left; the number of places moved is the exponent (positive for large numbers, negative for small).
Does the calculator handle negative numbers?
Yes. The sign stays with the mantissa, and only the magnitude is normalized into the 1–10 range.