FIVE FLOOD STORIES

[We Never Know]

One can date the strata. It obviously has to be older than the youngest strata, but they are usually dated by specific events. And volcanic eruptions quite often accompany those events. You have heard of the "Ring of fire" that surrounds the Pacific? Where do you think the "fire" came from?

If lava is recycled rock that's been here for billions of years, how does it date different after it was rock, became lava, then became rock again?

 

[Subduction Zone]

Correct me if I'm wrong. Don't we use rock to date strata and strata to date rock?

There are two ways to date rock. Rock strata gives us a relative date. Younger sedimentary rock lies upon older sedimentary rock. We can also get absolute dates from igneous rock. Volcanoes are very often associated with mountain building, orogeny. Volcanic deposits are igneous and can be dated absolutely.

 

[We Never Know]

I apologize if I'm throwing to many questions out there. But as it's been said, any question is a good question.

 

[We Never Know]

There are two ways to date rock. Rock strata gives us a relative date. Younger sedimentary rock lies upon older sedimentary rock. We can also get absolute dates from igneous rock. Volcanoes are very often associated with mountain building, orogeny. Volcanic deposits are igneous and can be dated absolutely.

Which goes with this post.

If lava is recycled rock that's been here for billions of years, how does it date different after it was rock, became lava, then became rock again?

 

[Subduction Zone]

If lava is recycled rock that's been here for billions of years, how does it date different after it was rock, became lava, then became rock again?

It is old rock that has melted and formed new crystals. When a crystal is formed the radiometric clock is started.

 

[We Never Know]

There are two ways to date rock. Rock strata gives us a relative date. Younger sedimentary rock lies upon older sedimentary rock. We can also get absolute dates from igneous rock. Volcanoes are very often associated with mountain building, orogeny. Volcanic deposits are igneous and can be dated absolutely.

How do you date the older rock from younger rock?

 

[Subduction Zone]

I apologize if I'm throwing to many questions out there. But as it's been said, any question is a good question.

no problem. And I would say any honest question is a good question. There is nothing wrong with wanting to learn.

 

[We Never Know]

It is old rock that has melted and formed new crystals. When a crystal is formed the radiometric clock is started.

Ok. Since there have been many volcanic eruptions that have covered earth, and earth/rock constantly being regenerated by volcanoes(Hawaii a good example)how does that affect dating rock?

 

[We Never Know]

It is old rock that has melted and formed new crystals. When a crystal is formed the radiometric clock is started.

This may be a bad example but I'm going to throw it out there. If you took a 300 year old bottle, melted it down and made a new bottle, would it still date 300 years or date as new?

 

[Subduction Zone]

How do you date the older rock from younger rock?

For volcanics? Probably the most common method is the Potassium/Argon method. A small percentage of potassium is radioactive. It decays into calcium or argon at known ratios. Rocks that have potassium also tend to have calcium, so that does not help us. But since argon is an inert gas they tend not to have any of that. Crystals will not incorporate he has in their structure when they form. By analyzing how much argon and how much potassium an igneous crystal has we can date it.

 

[We Never Know]

This may be a bad example but I'm going to throw it out there. If you took a 300 year old bottle, melted it down and made a new bottle, would it still date 300 years or date as new?

Or this may be better. A volcano melted down 2 billion year old rock and spewed it out as lava today. Would it date as 2 billion years old or date as new?

 

[Subduction Zone]

This may be a bad example but I'm going to throw it out there. If you took a 300 year old bottle, melted it down and made a new bottle, would it still date 300 years or date as new?

a bottle probably would not be dateable. Unless it has some radioactive elements in it, but I do not know of any.

 

[We Never Know]

For volcanics? Probably the most common method is the Potassium/Argon method. A small percentage of potassium is radioactive. It decays into calcium or argon at known ratios. Rocks that have potassium also tend to have calcium, so that does not help us. But since argon is an inert gas they tend not to have any of that. Crystals will not incorporate he has in their structure when they form. By analyzing how much argon and how much potassium an igneous crystal has we can date it.

What's the half life of argon and potassium that are being used to date it?

 

[We Never Know]

a bottle probably would not be dateable. Unless it has some radioactive elements in it, but I do not know of any.

The rock used to build the pyramids are millions of years old but we don't date them they old. Why?

 

[Subduction Zone]

Or this may be better. A volcano melted down 2 billion year old rock and spewed it out as lava today. Would it date as 2 billion years old or date as new?

New, if melted. When crystals from they "seal" the contents inside them. The date the rick. Some rocks with a good amount of uranium can even give us two dates. Individual crystals can give the date of melting, it has been a long time and I would need to refresh my memory on how isochrons can be used to date both the most recent event and the original formation.

 

[Subduction Zone]

What's the half life of argon and potassium that are being used to date it?

Potassium 40 has a half life of one and a quarter billion years.

Potassium-40 - Wikipedia

The article has a bit about K/Ar dating in it too.

 

[We Never Know]

New, if melted. When crystals from they "seal" the contents inside them. The date the rick. Some rocks with a good amount of uranium can even give us two dates. Individual crystals can give the date of melting, it has been a long time and I would need to refresh my memory on how isochrons can be used to date both the most recent event and the original formation.

Would all the lava/new rock that is forming from volcanoes in Hawaii date less than thousands of years old?

 

[Subduction Zone]

The rock used to build the pyramids are millions of years old but we don't date them they old. Why?

We can date their time of formation. There may be chemical means of dating (my @&#&#ing autowrong feature keeps.changing that to eating) . That would be in the realm of archaeology.

 

[We Never Know]

Potassium 40 has a half life of one and a quarter billion years.

Potassium-40 - Wikipedia

The article has a bit about K/Ar dating in it too.

But you followed up and said new if melted.

 

[We Never Know]

We can date their time of formation. There may be chemical means of dating (my @&#&#ing autowrong feature keeps.changing that to eating) . That would be in the realm of archaeology.

Yes we can date when the rock formed. That doesn't help dating the pyramids.