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LoginCosmos ยป Earth. But how is it dated? What does radiometric dating actually mean? And what methods of dating can be used to date which kinds of items? Radiometric dating is a method of establishing how old something is โ perhaps a wooden artefact, a rock, or a fossil โ based on the presence of a radioactive isotope within it. The basic logic behind radiometric dating is that if you compare the presence of a radioactive isotope within a sample to its known abundance on Earth, and its known half-life its rate of decay , you can calculate the age of the sample. Radiometric dating is useful for finding the age of ancient things, because many radioactive materials decay at a slow rate.
Radiocarbon dating also referred to as carbon dating or carbon dating is a method for determining the age of an object containing organic material by using the properties of radiocarbon , a radioactive isotope of carbon. The method was developed in the late s at the University of Chicago by Willard Libby. It is based on the fact that radiocarbon 14 C is constantly being created in the Earth's atmosphere by the interaction of cosmic rays with atmospheric nitrogen. The resulting 14 C combines with atmospheric oxygen to form radioactive carbon dioxide , which is incorporated into plants by photosynthesis ; animals then acquire 14 C by eating the plants.
Radiocarbon dating can easily establish that humans have been on the earth for over twenty thousand years, at least twice as long as creationists are willing to allow. Therefore it should come as no surprise that creationists at the Institute for Creation Research ICR have been trying desperately to discredit this method for years. They have their work cut out for them, however, because radiocarbon C dating is one of the most reliable of all the radiometric dating methods. This article will answer several of the most common creationist attacks on carbon dating, using the question-answer format that has proved so useful to lecturers and debaters. Answer: Cosmic rays in the upper atmosphere are constantly converting the isotope nitrogen N into carbon C or radiocarbon.
Radiocarbon dating is an analysis method based on the measurement of the radioactive C isotope of carbon that accumulates in organisms during their life and decays after their death. Radiocarbon dating is used to estimate the age of biological samples and materials of organic origin, such as fossils and historical objects, along with some inorganic samples that contain carbon. In archaeology and fossil research, radiocarbon dating is used to study the past conditions and environments on Earth. C dating can also be used to determine the age of different materials and objects containing carbon-based organic or inorganic compounds. Very recent samples cannot be dated reliably โ instead, the material should originate from before the 18th century.
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