Question

If we find a dinosaur fossil, and in the same rock there is a crystal which can be radiometrically dated, and we get a date of 237 mya from that crystal, what age are we measuring?.

Answer 1

The age we measure using radiometric dating of a crystal found in the same rock as a dinosaur fossil is the time since that rock layer solidified, which includes both the crystal and the embedded dinosaur remains.

Step-by-step explanation:

When using radiometric dating to determine the age of a dinosaur fossil found with a crystal in the same rock layer, and the crystal is dated at 237 million years old (mya), you are measuring the time since that rock layer solidified and trapped both the crystal and the dinosaur remains. This dating technique relies on the decay of radioactive isotopes within the crystal. The assumption is that when the rock formed, it contained a known amount of the parent radioactive isotope, and no daughter atoms were present. Over time, the parent isotopes decay into daughter isotopes at a constant rate, known as a half-life.

The most important aspect of radiometric dating is that it provides an absolute date for when the rock—and therefore the fossil within it—was formed. This is distinct from relative dating, which can only determine the sequence of events. The age determined through radiometric dating is based on the fixed decay rate of the radioactive elements within the crystal embedded in the same geological layer as the fossil.

Answer 2

The age when the crystal was formed in a igneous rock