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How do scientist find fossils?

Updated: 8/11/2023
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12y ago

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scientists use carbon dating to tell how old fossils are. They can also tell how old it is by using relative dating (for example): if a fossil is found deeper in the ground than another fossil, it is older.

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15y ago
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14y ago

Imagine finding something that lived on Earth millions of years ago. That is what paleontologists (pay-lee-en-TAH-le-jists) do. These scientists look for fossils. A fossil is what is left of an animal or plant that lived long ago. Many fossils are the bones of animals that were buried. Over many years, they got buried deeper, and the bones and nearby soil hardened into rock. Here is how paleontologists dig up fossils to study.

1. How do scientists know where to look for fossils? Sometimes weather wears away the soil and uncovers a fossil. Other times, builders find a fossil when they dig. That is a clue that there might be more fossils deep under the ground. So scientists use bulldozers to dig away chunks of rock and soil.

2. Workers then use shovels, drills, hammers, and chisels to get the fossils out of the ground. The scientists dig up the fossil and the rock around it in one big lump. They must be careful not to break the fossil as they dig.

3. Paleontologists have to keep careful records of the fossils they find. They measure, draw, and take pictures of the fossils. They use this information later, when they work with the fossils in their laboratories.

4. The parts of the fossil that stick out of the rock are sprayed or painted with a special glue. This helps to make the bones strong. Then the fossil and rock are wrapped in bandages covered with plaster. This protects the fossil so it will not break when it is sent to the lab.

5. The fossils are labeled and placed in crates with soft padding. These crates help protect the fossils from breaking. The crates are carefully loaded onto trucks and sent to the lab. There, scientists will use the fossils to learn about creatures of long ago.

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13y ago

They learn through a chemical called hypiothermalia and this is a pill that some scientists use to get together some ideas of where and what kind of fossils there are in the world. They find fossils in their head and they then go off to that place in the world and buy the fossils. Some scientists go mad if they do not get that fossil and this makes them raise their bid until they get the fossil.

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12y ago

scientist find fossils by digging under neath sedimentary rocks and try to look where the sedimentary rock are.

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12y ago

People have dug in grounds and found themmmmmmmmmmmmm... awesome, isn't it?

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12y ago

They dig

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Related questions

Why do scientist find relative dating easy?

because it is easier to find the age of fossils


Where do scientist find clues about past climate conditions?

rocks an fossils


What evidence do scientists find in fossils and living things?

Scientist find evidence about common ancestors.


Why do you get fossils?

In D/P/P, you can find fossils in the Underground. In FR/LG, you can choose from two fossils, after defeating a Scientist Trainer, close to the exit of Mt. Moon? (Or something like that.)


How did the scientist find the ancestor of plants?

by comparing fossils and using carbon dating to see how old they were


What scientist studies dinosouras and fosssils?

scientist who study fossils


What scientist sudies dinosaurs and fossils?

Palaeontologists study fossils and dinosaurs.


How do scientist name fossils?

with a brain.


What is a scientist who studies fossils?

A scientist who studies fossils is called a paleontologist. They analyze fossils to understand past life forms, their environments, and evolutionary history.


Why do scientist use radioisotopes to find the age of fossils?

Radiometric dating of fossils is not possible beyond roughly 70,000 years. However, when fossils are found in association with strata of volcanic and metamorphic rocks which can be dated radiometrically, a very accurate age of the fossils can be determined.


Fossils are studied by a special kind of scientist called?

A palaeontologist studies fossils.


What is a scientist called when they study fossils?

paleontologists