The use of radiometric dating was first published in 1907 by Bertram Boltwood and is now the principal source of information about the absolute age of rocks and other geological features, including the age of fossilized life forms or the age of the Earth itself, and can also be used to date a wide range of natural and

What is absolute or radiometric dating?

Radiometric dating Most absolute dates for rocks are obtained with radiometric methods. These use radioactive minerals in rocks as geological clocks. The atoms of some chemical elements have different forms, called isotopes. These break down over time in a process scientists call radioactive decay.

What is the difference between radioactive dating and absolute dating?

Explanation: Absolute dating(also known as radiometric dating) is based by the measurement of the content of specific radioactive isotopes of which the half time is known. Relative dating instead allows for identifying the sequential order of geological events one relative to the other.