The scientific process ofcarbondating has been used to determine the historic period ofÖtzi the Iceman , seeds found in King Tutankhamun’stomb , and many other archaeologic discovery under 60,000 years old . However , asSciShowpoints out in a recent episode , the excessive use of fossil fuels is make that method acting less honest .
Carbon geological dating , also call up carbon 14 or C-14 dating , need break down the ratio of two isotopes of carbon : C-14 ( a radioactive human body of atomic number 6 that dilapidate over clip ) and C-12 ( a more stable figure ) . By analyzing that ratio in a give aim compared to a living organism , archaeologists , paleontologists , and other scientists can get a pretty clean idea of how sure-enough that first object is . However , as more andmore fossil fuelsare burned , more carbon dioxide is release into the environment . In turn , this releases more of another isotope , call C-12 , which changes the ratio of carbon paper isotopes in the ambiance and skews the carbon go out analysis . This phenomenon is called the Suess effect , and it ’s been well - document since the‘70s . SciShow notes that the atmospherical carbon ratio has exchange in the yesteryear , but it was n’t anything drastic .
A recentstudypublished inNature Communicationsdemonstrates the construct . Writing inThe Conversation , the study source suggest that volcanoes “ can lie in about their age . " Ancient volcanic eruptions can be date stamp by compare the “ wiggly trace ” of C-14 find in trees killed in the eruption to the reference " wiggle " of C-14 in the atmosphere . ( This cognitive process is in reality called squirm - compeer geological dating . ) But this method “ is not valid if atomic number 6 dioxide gas from the volcano is affecting a Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ’s version of the wiggle , ” researchers write .
According to another newspaper publisher cited by SciShow , we ’re sum so much C-12 to the atmosphere at the current rate of dodo fuel usage that by 2050 brand - new materials will seem like they ’re 1000 years old . Some scientist have suggested that levels of C-13 ( a more stable isotope ) be take into account while doing carbon date , but that ’s only a stopgap measure . The actual challenge will be to reduce our addiction on fossil fuels .
For more on how radiocarbon date is becoming less predictable , check out SciShow ’s video below .
