What is uranium-lead dating?
Q: What is uranium-lead dating?
A: Uranium-lead dating is a radiometric dating scheme that relies on two separate decay chains, the uranium series from 238U to 206Pb, and the actinium series from 235U to 207Pb.
Q: What is the age range for uranium-lead dating?
A: Uranium-lead dating can be used over an age range of about 1 million years to over 4.5 billion years.
Q: What is the precision range for uranium-lead dating?
A: The precision range for uranium-lead dating is in the 0.1-1 percent range.
Q: How many decay chains does uranium-lead dating rely on?
A: Uranium-lead dating relies on two separate decay chains, the uranium series from 238U to 206Pb and the actinium series from 235U to 207Pb.
Q: What is the U-Pb isochron dating method?
A: The U-Pb isochron dating method is a technique within the overall U-Pb system that uses a single decay scheme (usually 238U to 206Pb) to determine the age of a sample.
Q: What is the lead-lead dating method?
A: The lead-lead dating method is a technique within the U-Pb system that determines ages by analyzing the Pb isotope ratios alone.
Q: Who is famous for using uranium-lead dating to estimate the age of the Earth?
A: Clair Cameron Patterson, an American geochemist, is famous for having used uranium-lead radiometric dating methods to obtain one of the earliest accurate estimates of the age of the Earth.
