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Dating the past – introduction
https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/1478-dating-the-past-introduction
Dating methodsMuch of the time it is enough to know what is called a ‘relative’ date. Relative dating places a rock somewhere in a time sequence – one rock is older than some rocks, younger than others – but this does not tell you the actual number of years ago that the rock was formed. However, scientists often need to know actual dates of geological events so they can study landscape and environmental change.
Methods of ‘absolute’ dating provide dates, in numbers of years, for some types of rock. Geologists know, for example, that the Jurassic period lasted from about 251 to 145.5 million years ago. However, these dates sometimes change, as geologists continually work to refine them. Many geologists find it more convenient to refer to period names rather than actual dates. After all, it’s easier to call a movie Jurassic Park than Between About 251 and 145.5 Million Years Ago Park.
The dating method a geologist chooses depends on several things. Sometimes only relative dating is possible, as the rocks being studied do not contain material suitable for absolute dating. Most absolute dating methods measure radioactive elements in some way, so can only be used on rocks that contain these elements.
Our collection of resources on dating the past includes New Zealand research that uses a variety of dating approaches, covering different time spans:
Fossil correlation – students date fossils from one site by matching them to fossils already dated somewhere else, using real data from Mangahouanga, made famous by paleontologist Joan Wiffen.
Build a timescale – develop a timescale for a person’s life. The techniques of relative and absolute dating are similar to those used in the construction of a geological timescale.
Big numbers in science – investigate the use of big numbers, such as millions and billions, and they encounter ways to understand what these big numbers mean.
Which dating method? – learn to recognise some of the different relative and absolute dating methods.
Rock layers and relative dating – observe rocks layer located near Whanganui, watch an animation about how they were formed and use relative dating to work out the order in which the rocks were created in the interactive Relative rock layers.
Absolute dating rock layers – an interactive that asks students to choose the best absolute dating method for each layer of rock in a cliff, based on material present in each rock.
Key terms
For explanations of key concepts, see Dating the past – key terms.
TimelineExplore the timeline to find out about developments in how geologists discover the ages of rocks and fossils.
Question bank
The Dating the past – question bank provides an initial list of questions about measuring the age of rocks and fossils and places where their answers can be found. The questions support an inquiry approach.
https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/1478-dating-the-past-introduction
Dating methodsMuch of the time it is enough to know what is called a ‘relative’ date. Relative dating places a rock somewhere in a time sequence – one rock is older than some rocks, younger than others – but this does not tell you the actual number of years ago that the rock was formed. However, scientists often need to know actual dates of geological events so they can study landscape and environmental change.
Methods of ‘absolute’ dating provide dates, in numbers of years, for some types of rock. Geologists know, for example, that the Jurassic period lasted from about 251 to 145.5 million years ago. However, these dates sometimes change, as geologists continually work to refine them. Many geologists find it more convenient to refer to period names rather than actual dates. After all, it’s easier to call a movie Jurassic Park than Between About 251 and 145.5 Million Years Ago Park.
The dating method a geologist chooses depends on several things. Sometimes only relative dating is possible, as the rocks being studied do not contain material suitable for absolute dating. Most absolute dating methods measure radioactive elements in some way, so can only be used on rocks that contain these elements.
Our collection of resources on dating the past includes New Zealand research that uses a variety of dating approaches, covering different time spans:
- The construction of geological timescales involves relative and absolute dating. Date range involved: up to 4.6 billion years ago.
- The dating of dinosaur and other fossils from Hawke’s Bay uses relative dating and matching the fossils with those from other places that have been accurately dated. Date range involved: 90 to 65 million years ago.
- Near Whanganui, layers of rock record cycles of climate change over millions of years. The relative order of events has been worked out, and absolute dates have been determined for points through the sequence. Date range involved: the last 5 million years.
- In a South Island peat bog, detailed dates have been obtained for vegetation changes during the last two ice ages. Absolute dating methods were chosen to suit the material available. Date range involved: the last 150,000 years.
Fossil correlation – students date fossils from one site by matching them to fossils already dated somewhere else, using real data from Mangahouanga, made famous by paleontologist Joan Wiffen.
Build a timescale – develop a timescale for a person’s life. The techniques of relative and absolute dating are similar to those used in the construction of a geological timescale.
Big numbers in science – investigate the use of big numbers, such as millions and billions, and they encounter ways to understand what these big numbers mean.
Which dating method? – learn to recognise some of the different relative and absolute dating methods.
Rock layers and relative dating – observe rocks layer located near Whanganui, watch an animation about how they were formed and use relative dating to work out the order in which the rocks were created in the interactive Relative rock layers.
Absolute dating rock layers – an interactive that asks students to choose the best absolute dating method for each layer of rock in a cliff, based on material present in each rock.
Key terms
For explanations of key concepts, see Dating the past – key terms.
TimelineExplore the timeline to find out about developments in how geologists discover the ages of rocks and fossils.
Question bank
The Dating the past – question bank provides an initial list of questions about measuring the age of rocks and fossils and places where their answers can be found. The questions support an inquiry approach.