Final answer:
Radiocarbon dating requires the object being tested to have been alive at one point in time. This dating method measures the decay of carbon-14, which only works accurately for organic remains up to about 50,000 years old and is most precise for samples up to 30,000 years old.
Step-by-step explanation:
For radiocarbon dating to work, the object being tested must have been alive at one time. This archaeology tool relies on measuring the amount of radioactive carbon in the sample, specifically carbon-14 (14C). Radiocarbon dating, also known as carbon-14 dating, is the most widely used technique for dating organic artifacts between 50 and 60,000 years old.
The process works because living organisms constantly replenish their supply of carbon-14 through respiration. Once an organism dies, it no longer replenishes carbon-14, which begins to decay at a known rate. By measuring how much carbon-14 remains, scientists can estimate the time at which the organism ceased to exist. This method is accurate for dating substances that are up to about 30,000 years old and can provide reasonably accurate dates up to a maximum of about 50,000 years old.
Objects older than about 20,000 years may not have sufficient carbon-14 left to determine their age accurately. For determining the age of much older objects, other radioisotopes like uranium-238 with a longer half-life are used.