To radiocarbon date an organic material, a scientist can measure the ratio of remaining Carbon-14 to the unchanged Carbon-12 to see how long it has been since the materials source died. Advancing technology has allowed radiocarbon dating to become accurate to within just a few decades in many cases.

Is carbon-14 good for dating?

t = 18,940 years old. Because the half-life of carbon-14 is 5,700 years, it is only reliable for dating objects up to about 60,000 years old. The use of various radioisotopes allows the dating of biological and geological samples with a high degree of accuracy.

How far back does carbon-14 dating work?

55,000 years ago The work combines thousands of data points from tree rings, lake and ocean sediments, corals and stalagmites, among other features, and extends the time frame for radiocarbon dating back to 55,000 years ago — 5,000 years further than the last calibration update in 2013.