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How do scientist use radioactive elements to determine the actual age of fossils?
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
scientist can determine a fossil's age in two ways: relative dating and absolute dating
Lupe Hahn
Wiki User
∙ 12y agothey use a technique called ,absolute dating this allows scientist to determine the actual age of fossils.the rocks that fossils are found near contain radioactive element unstable elements that decay ,or break down ,into different elementss .the half life of a radio active element is the time it takes for half of the atoms ina a sample to decay
Wiki User
∙ 7y agoscientist can determine a fossil's age in two ways: relative dating and absolute dating
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What radioactive technique is used to determine the age of fossils?
What radioactive technique is used to determine the age of fossils? The radioactive technique of radiometric dating is used to determine the age of fossils. This is a way to measure the proportions of a daughter isotope and the parent radioisotope of some element trapped inside a rock since the time the rock formed. A radioisotope is a form of an element with an unstable nucleus. Radioactive atoms decay, or lose energy and subatomic particles until they reach a more stable form. It is not possible to predict the exact instant of one atom's decay, but a predictable number of an isotope's atoms will decay over a period of time. Like the ticking of a perfect clock, the characteristic rate of decay for each isotope is constant. In other words, changes in pressure, temperature, or chemical state do not alter it. Radiometric dating doesn't work for sedimentary rock. It works for volcanic rock or ashes, which hold the most fossils. The ratio of carbon 14 to carbon 12 is used to date recent fossils that still contain some carbon. The only way to date older fossils is to determine their position relative to any volcanic rocks in the same area. This dating method has an error factor of less than 10 percent.
What is the process called when scientists use radioactive isotopes to calculate a fossils age?
Radioactive elements tend to degrade or give off radiation at a constant rate. That is an essential part of radioactive carbon dating. Uranium, for instance has a has half life of 5,400 years. Each 5,400 years, half of the uranium becomes inert lead. It is considered an accurate form of dating.
How do scientists use sedimentary rock to determine a fossils relative age?
Scientists use sedimentary rock to determine a fossil relative age by studying the rock.
How can the absolute age of a rock be determined?
Through Radioactive Dating or Isotopic Dating.
What are index fossils and how are they used to determine the absolute age of sedimentary rock?
Index fossils can be used to help determine the relative age of rock layers. Index fossils are from species that only existed for a short time. Index fossils are found in rock layers. Trilobites and Graptolites are index fossils.
What two ways do scientist use fossils to determine the environmental changes?
its radioactive dating and relative dating
How do radioactive elements be used to date fossils?
brick
What can scientists learn from the rate at which radioactive elements decay?
fossils
How do scientist determine when an era begins and when it ends?
rocks and fossils
What property of radioactive isotopes allow them to be used to determine the age of rocks and fossils?
Their half life.
What is used to determine the age of fossils?
Carbondating is the method often used to date fossils, and that involves both the elements Carbon-12 and Carbon-14.
Is a type of evidence used by scientists to determine evolutionary relationships?
The evidence do scientist use to determine evolutionary relationships by scientist have combined the evidence from DNA, protein structure, fossils, early development, and body structure to determine the evolutionary relationship amoung species.
Which of these four radioactive elements would you choose to date a fossil from the most recent epoch?
Four elements are not mentioned but fossils contain organic material that means carbon compounds so carbon-13 isotope is more suitable, in case of radioactive elements that isotope is most suitable which have the half life period in millions of years.
What scientist studies dinosouras and fosssils?
scientist who study fossils
What scientist sudies dinosaurs and fossils?
Palaeontologists study fossils and dinosaurs.
Radioactive dating of fossils depends on the decay of what?
plants
What two methods are used to determine the age of a rock?
The two methods are relative dating and radioactive dating for fossils. I think it's the same for rocks.
