The Amazon river releases 5.5 x 10^7 gallons of water into the Atlantic Ocean every second. There are about 3.2 x 10^7 seconds in a year. How many gallons are released into the ocean in one year? Express your answer with the appropriate number of significant digits.

Answer 1

To find the number of gallons released into the ocean in one year, we need to multiply the gallons released per second by the number of seconds in a year.

5.5 x 10^7 gallons/second * 3.2 x 10^7 seconds/year = (5.5 x 3.2) x 10^(7+7) gallons/year

= 17.6 x 10^14 gallons/year

Since we are given that the release rate has 2 significant digits (5.5) and the time has 2 significant digits (3.2), our answer should have 2 significant digits.

Therefore, the answer is 1.8 x 10^15 gallons/year.