Let's break this down. We're going to add 8429 and 8973 together.

Step 1: We'll start by adding the digits 9 & 3 in column 1 and get 12.
We'll write down the last digit 2 and carry the 1 to the next column.

Step 2: We'll start by adding the digits 2 & 7 in column 2 and get 10.
We'll write down the last digit 0 and carry the 1 to the next column.

Step 3: We'll start by adding the digits 4 & 9 in column 3 and get 14.
We'll write down the last digit 4 and carry the 1 to the next column.

Step 4: We'll start by adding the digits 8 & 8 in column 4 and get 17.
We'll write down the last digit 7 and carry the 1 to the next column.

So, 8429 + 8973 = 17402.

