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Why is volcanic basalt used to give an absolute age date?

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Volcanic rocks are useful in determining the absolute age of their rock layer because of how they form. To best determine absolute age, you want the radioactive elements present in the rock to remain undisturbed so that their decay rate is both uniform and accurate. read more

Along that same line of thinking, volcanic ash is considered to be the best resource for absolute age dating. This is because an ash layer forms especially quickly, sometimes in only a day or two. For this reason, an undisturbed ash layer is thought to the most accurate for determining absolute age. Lexington, thanks for the A2A. read more

Of course, some radioactive decay could have occurred in the mantle source region of both these basalt lavas, but again, such radioactive decay there in the mantle would not provide the basis for calculating any date for when these basalt lavas flowed out onto the earth’s surface. read more

Geologists often need to know the age of material that they find. They use absolute dating methods, sometimes called numerical dating, to give rocks an actual date, or date range, in number of years. read more

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