While radiocarbon is best known as a dating tool, this rare isotope can also provide unique and wide-ranging insights into the cycling of carbon in the Earth system.
radioactivity
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Una explosión de radiocarbono del pasado
El fechamiento por radiocarbono es un pilar de la climatología y la arqueología. Sin embargo, esta metodología se encuentra amenazada por las emisiones de combustibles fósiles, que invalidan una señal útil proveniente de pruebas nucleares.
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Radiocarbon’s Blast from the Past
Radiocarbon dating is a cornerstone of climate and archaeological sciences. But the method is under threat as fossil fuel emissions negate a useful signal from atomic tests.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Estimating Uranium and Thorium Abundance with Geoneutrinos
Terrestrial electron antineutrino observations provide new constraints on the contributions of radiogenic heat in the mantle.
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Groundwater May Fix as Much Carbon as Some Ocean Surface Waters
Microbes from wells as deep as 90 meters created organic carbon at a rate that overlaps with some nutrient-poor spots in the ocean.
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Using Nuclear Fallout to Measure Soil Erosion in Tunisia
Cesium-137 acts as a tracer to evaluate the efficiency of conservation methods.
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Traces of Impacts on Warm Planetesimals Early in Solar System
Meteorite NWA 11004 contains evidence of melting preceding an impact dated to 4546±36 Ma. Short lived radioactive decay had already heated the parent body of this meteorite before the impact.
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Radioactive Bookkeeping of Carbon Emissions
A new sampling method uses carbon-14 to single out which carbon dioxide molecules in the atmosphere derive from fossil fuels. The method could help track emissions goals for climate mitigation.
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How to Read Atmospheric History Written in Flowstones
Oxygen isotope ratios in cave deposits reflect past climates, but interpreting these data is not straightforward. A new study explores what these ratios really tell us.
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The Dawning of the Age of Old Aquifers
A new technique using 81Kr can measure the age of old groundwater in arid regions. The method can be used as a proxy for past climates and weather patterns.