How is carbon dating used to determine the age of animal and plant fossils?
Question by JH: How is carbon dating used to determine the age of animal and plant fossils?
How is carbon dating used to determine the age of animal and plant fossils? Why can’t it be used to determine the age of a suit of armor?
Best answer:
Answer by Elyse
its because the carbon in the rock and sediments decompose and a certain rate. the carbon in the armor wont decompose
What do you think? Answer below!
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All living things contain a certain amount of radioactive, carbon 14 which has a half-life of 5730 years. This means that half of the initial quantity of carbon 14 will decompose into stable carbon 12 or carbon 13 every 5730 years.
The amount of carbon 14 present in all living things is proportional to the amount in the atmosphere so at the time of death of any living organism that portion of carbon 14 present in the organism will start to decompose.
Scientists use the amount of carbon 14 in a sample from a living organism, like a fossil, to trace back to the time of its death. Carbon 14 is produced through bodily functions like photosynthesis. That is why carbon dating can’t be performed on a suit of armor because it doesn’t contain carbon 14.