geological dating

Definitions of geological dating
  1. noun
    use of chemical analysis to estimate the age of geological specimens
    synonyms: dating
    see moresee less
    types:
    potassium-argon dating
    geological dating that relies on the proportions of radioactive potassium in a rock sample and its decay product, argon
    carbon dating, carbon-14 dating, radiocarbon dating
    a chemical analysis used to determine the age of organic materials based on their content of the radioisotope carbon-14; believed to be reliable up to 40,000 years
    rubidium-strontium dating
    geological dating based on the proportions of radioactive rubidium into its decay product strontium; radioactive rubidium has a half-life of 47,000,000,000 years
    type of:
    chemical analysis, qualitative analysis
    the act of decomposing a substance into its constituent elements
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