> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://goodoil.news/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # How Does Radiocarbon Dating Work? - URL: https://goodoil.news/how-does-radiocarbon-dating-work/ - Published: 2023-02-26T01:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2023-02-26T22:17:15.000Z - Author: Guest Post - Tags: Science, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2024-07-16 22:34 **Owen Cumming** [particle.scitech.org.au](https://particle.scitech.org.au/tech/particle-101-radiocarbon-dating/?ref=goodoil.news) --- Carbon dating is how we determine the age of fossils and relics from our past. But how does it actually work? WA is home to the earliest fossil evidence of [life](https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/news/2013/11/oldest-signs-of-life-probed-in-the-pilbara/?ref=goodoil.news) and [human culture](https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/apr/08/wa-aboriginal-site-near-rio-tinto-mine-more-than-50000-years-old-new-study-reveals?ref=goodoil.news) on Earth. But when an archaeologist reveals a relic or a palaeontologist finds a fossil, how do they know how old it is? ![](https://particle.azureedge.net/app/uploads/2023/02/giphy-1.gif) GIPHY The answer, my friends, is radiocarbon dating. Carbon dating helps us uncover WA’s geological and aboriginal history by measuring the ratio of carbon-14 atoms to carbon-12 atoms in organic material. But for most of us, it’s not totally clear what that actually means. To understand, perhaps it’s best to go back to the beginning. #### **Carbon chaos** Picture this. We’re in Earth’s upper atmosphere. Nitrogen-14 atoms (N-14) (7 protons and 7 neutrons in their nucleus) are floating around, relaxing. Suddenly, the N-14 atoms are bombarded by photons from the Sun! ![](https://particle.azureedge.net/app/uploads/2023/02/giphy-2.gif) GIPHY The force of it rips their protons and neutrons apart – rearranging their atomic nuclei to create carbon-14 (C-14) (6 protons and 8 neutrons)! However, the C-14 atom is not relaxed but unstable! It was never meant to be. So by ejecting an electron (also known as [beta decay](https://www.britannica.com/science/beta-decay?ref=goodoil.news)), C-14 begins turning one of its neutrons into a proton – slowly but surely turning itself back into N-14. Meanwhile, carbon-12 atoms (C-12) (6 protons and 6 neutrons) float around in the atmosphere unbothered. ![](https://particle.azureedge.net/app/uploads/2023/02/giphy-3.gif) GIPHY When you take a step back and look at the atmosphere as a whole, C-12 concentrations don’t change. However, N-14 is constantly turning into C-14. As a result, there’s always a consistent ratio of C-14 to C-12 atoms in the atmosphere. That is very important. #### **Tick tock carbon clock** Humans and every other living thing on Earth [take in carbon](https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/carbon-cycle/?ref=goodoil.news) throughout our lives. And eventually, the ratio of C-14 to C-12 in our bodies ends up being almost exactly the same as the ratio in the atmosphere. When things die, half the trapped C-14 will succeed in turning into N-14 every 5730 years. This is called a [half-life](https://gml.noaa.gov/ccgg/isotopes/decay.html?ref=goodoil.news#:~:text=The%20time%20it%20takes%20for,described%20by%20its%20half%2Dlife.&text=C%20has%20a%20half%2Dlife,a%20sample%20of%20organic%20material.). Meanwhile, the C-12 atoms continue to do absolutely nothing. #### **Half, of a half, of a half** … So something 5730 years old will have exactly half the ratio of C-14 to C-12 compared to the atmosphere. Still with me? ![](https://particle.azureedge.net/app/uploads/2023/02/giphy-4.gif) GIPHY After another 5730 years, half of the remaining C-14 will have decayed to C-12\. So the ratio will be one-quarter of the atmosphere’s. This cycle of C-14 atoms halving in concentration every 5730 years goes on and on for about 50,000 years. At that point, there is only one 500th of the original C-14 left. And measurements start to get unreliable. ![](https://particle.azureedge.net/app/uploads/2023/02/giphy-5.gif) GIPHY #### **Understanding our past** By measuring the way carbon atoms change within the Earth, C-14 dating allows us to know when things were created. This gives us a better understanding of early human cultures and the history of our planet. Yeah, it’s a lot of numbers to get your head around. But that’s [the beauty of maths, right](https://particle.scitech.org.au/people/particle-101-wtf-is-maths/?ref=goodoil.news)? *This article was originally published on [Particle](https://particle.scitech.org.au/?ref=goodoil.news). Read the [original article](https://particle.scitech.org.au/tech/particle-101-radiocarbon-dating/?ref=goodoil.news).* ![](https://particle.scitech.org.au/republish-pixel/19343) [If you enjoyed this article please share it using the share buttons at the top or bottom of the article.](#) [If you would like to access exclusive Member content or just remove the ads to make your reading experience more enjoyable click here to browse our Membership options.](https://thebfd.co.nz/subscription-plans/?ref=2)