Radioactive Dating and the early Earth

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Half-life

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The time required for half of the parent isotope to decay into daughter isotopes.

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Relative Age

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The age of rocks and geologic features compared with other rocks and features nearby.

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Carbon-14 dating

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A method used to determine the age of dead plants and animals.

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Oldest rocks on Earth

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Approximately 4.2 billion years old.

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Absolute Age

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Average numerical age, in years, of a rock or object.

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Parent Isotope

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The original radioactive isotope that undergoes decay.

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Daughter Isotope

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The product of the decay of a parent isotope.

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Geologic Time Scale

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A system of chronological dating that relates geological strata to time.

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Radiometric Dating

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A technique used to date materials based on the decay of radioactive isotopes.

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Isotope

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Atoms of the same element with different numbers of neutrons.