Final answer:
The area of the river is approximately 0.008 km².
Step-by-step explanation:
To find the area of the river, we can use the formula for the area of a rectangle: Area = length x width. In this case, the length of the river is 172 m and the width is 48 m. Plugging in these values, we get:
Area = 172 m x 48 m = 8256 m²
However, the question asks for the area in square kilometers. To convert the area from square meters to square kilometers, we divide by 1,000,000 (since there are 1,000,000 square meters in a square kilometer):
Area = 8256 m² ÷ 1,000,000 = 0.008256 km²
Rounded to three significant figures, the area of the river is approximately 0.008 km².