Relative Dating

Relative Dating is a method used to determine the age of rocks and fossils in relation to one another, without determining their exact age.

The Law of Superposition states that in undisturbed layers of rock, the oldest layers are at the bottom.

An Unconformity is a gap in the geological record that occurs when rock layers are eroded or when sediment is not deposited for a period of time.

The rock layers are older than the fault that cuts through them.

It means that the younger rock layer was formed after the older rock layer.

Fossils help to establish the relative ages of rock layers, as certain fossils are known to appear only during specific time periods.

Intrusions are younger than the rock layers they cut through, as they form after the surrounding rock has already been established.

Faults are younger than the rock layers they intersect, as they occur after the formation of those layers.

The process is called Relative Dating.

The oldest feature is typically the bottom layer in an undisturbed sequence.