answersLogoWhite

0


Best Answer

After about 10 half-lives, or about 60,000 years, the number of atoms of carbon-14 remaining in a sample is so small that the possible contamination of the sample from atmospheric sources while it was simply lying in wait increases the uncertainty beyond an acceptable level.

Additionally, the levels of carbon-14 have varied over the years due to varying levels of cosmic rays and other climate related changes. As a result, it is necessary to fit the decay curve into the known history and compare it with calibration sources that were dated using other methods. We don't have good calibration sources beyond 60,000 years.

User Avatar

Wiki User

13y ago
This answer is:
User Avatar

Add your answer:

Earn +20 pts
Q: Why does Carbon-14's half-life limit what can be dated by the radiocarbon method when using C14?
Write your answer...
Submit
Still have questions?
magnify glass
imp
Continue Learning about Natural Sciences

A sample best dated with radiocarbon would be a?

prehistoric wooden tool


Is the Haber process out dated?

No, most of the Ammonia is still prepared by this method.


True or False Fossils may be dated by either the relative dating method which determines the relative order of fossils or by the absolute dating method which uses radioactive isotopes?

True


How many times did Mount Lassen erupt?

There are 95 Confirmed and dated eruptions during Holocene times for Kilauea. The most recent being the current eruption that began in January of 1983, all the way back to the first dated eruption layer at approximately 4650 BCE. The eruption list which is available through the Smithsonian Institute of Global Volcanism. The eruption list is compiled of historical accounts as well as tephrachronology and radiocarbon dating.


What are antipodals in botany?

Dendrochronology or tree-ring dating is the scientific method of dating based on the analysis of patterns of tree-rings. Dendrochronology can date the time at which tree rings were formed, in many types of wood, to the exact calendar year. This has three main areas of application: paleoecology, where it is used to determine certain aspects of past ecologies (most prominently climate); archaeology, where it is used to date old buildings, etc.; and radiocarbon dating, where it is used to calibrate radiocarbon ages (see below).In some areas of the world, it is possible to date wood back a few thousand years, or even many thousands. In most areas, however, wood can only be dated back several hundred years, if at all. Currently, the maximum for fully anchored chronologies is a little over 11,000 years from present.

Related questions

Which artifact could best be dated with carbon-14 a method called radiocarbon dating?

Organic artifacts such as bones, wood, charcoal, and organic remains from archaeological sites can best be dated using radiocarbon dating. This method is not suitable for inorganic materials like rocks or metal artifacts.


In radiocarbon dating the carbon-14 levels in the object being dated are compared with?

In radiocarbon dating, the carbon-14 levels in the object being dated are compared with _____.


In radiocarbon dating the carbon-14 levels in the object being dated are compared with .?

In radiocarbon dating, the carbon-14 levels in the object being dated are compared with _____.


A sample best dated with radiocarbon would be a?

prehistoric wooden tool


What are the limitations of radiocarbon dating?

Not all materials can be radiocarbon dated. Most, if not all, organic compounds can be dated. Some inorganic matter, like a shell's aragonite fraction, can also be dated for as long as their formation involved assimilation of carbon 14 in equilibrium with the atmosphere. Radiocarbon dating does not provide useful information on materials with no carbon 14 like coal.


A sample best dated using radiocarbon would be a?

Rocky Mountain granite


How does dendrochronology assist radiocarbon dating?

Tree rings provided truly known-age material needed to check the accuracy of radiocarbon dating as a method. During the late 1950s, several scientists (notably the Dutchman Hessel de Vries) were able to confirm the discrepancy between radiocarbon ages and calendar ages through results gathered from radiocarbon dating tree rings dated through dendrochronology. Today, tree rings are still used to calibrate radiocarbon determinations. Libraries of tree rings of different calendar ages are now available to provide records extending back over the last 11,000 years. Source: http://www.radiocarbon.eu/tree-ring-calibration.htm


What has the author Sylvia Peglar written?

Sylvia Peglar has written: 'A radiocarbon-dated pollen diagram from Loch of Winless, Caithness, north-east Scotland'


Which two criteria must be met before scientists can use radiocarbon dating?

Two criteria that must be met before scientists can use radiocarbon dating are the availability of carbon in the material being dated and the assumption that the carbon is of organic origin. Additionally, the material being dated should not be contaminated with younger or older carbon to obtain accurate results.


Which item could be dated using radiocarbon dating?

Carbon dating can be used on material which was living in the last few tens of thousands of years, The first kind are datings of things that should't be carbon dated are charcol and wood.


Could radiocarbon dating be used to determine the age of a stone artifact?

Radiocarbon dating is typically used to date organic materials that were once alive, like wood or bone, but not stone artifacts. Stones do not contain carbon that can be dated, so alternative methods, such as luminescence dating or stratigraphic analysis, would be more appropriate for determining their age.


How long have shoes been around?

The Bible's view of ancient man was supported when researchers found a collection of 18 shoes and sandals in central Missouri. While some of the shoes were dated at about 1,000 years old, others have been radiocarbon-dated at many thousands of years old.