1 : relating to, using, or measured by a radiometer. 2 : of or relating to the measurement of geologic time by means of the rate of disintegration of radioactive elements.

What is radiometric dating in simple terms?

Radiometric dating calculates an age in years for geologic materials by measuring the presence of a short-life radioactive element, e.g., carbon-14, or a long-life radioactive element plus its decay product, e.g., potassium-14/argon-40.

What is the meaning of radioactive dating?

The technique of comparing the abundance ratio of a radioactive isotope to a reference isotope to determine the age of a material is called radioactive dating. ... This ratio is the same for all living things–the same for humans as for trees or algae.