How old is the Earth?
Q: How old is the Earth?
A: The Earth is estimated to be a little over 4.5 billion years old.
Q: How was the age of the Earth determined?
A: The age of the Earth was determined by using radioactive dating methods.
Q: What are the oldest minerals on Earth?
A: The oldest minerals on Earth are small crystals of zircon from the Jack Hills of Western Australia, which are at least 4.4 billion years old.
Q: What are Ca-Al-rich inclusions?
A: Ca-Al-rich inclusions are the oldest known solid bits found in meteorites that were formed within the solar system and they are 4.567 billion years old.
Q: How long has it been since humans first tried to solve this problem?
A: For most of human history, humans have been trying to solve this problem and determine basic facts about our planet's age.
Q: When did scientists start making modern estimates for determining Earth's age?
A: Scientists started making modern estimates for determining Earth's age during the twentieth century.
Q:What does knowing about Ca-Al-rich inclusions tell us about our planet's age?
A: Knowing about Ca-Al-rich inclusions tells us that it gives an upper limit for our planet's age as well as an estimate for when our solar system was formed.
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