Relative Dating

States that younger rocks lie above older rocks if the layers have not been disturbed

• Law of crosscutting
• Law of superposition
• Relative Dating
• Unconformity

What are the relative ages of the features in order from oldest to youngest?

• Limestone, Basalt, Fault, Siltstone
• Siltstone, Fault, Basalt, Limestone
• Limestone, Fault, Basalt, Siltstone
• Limestone, Siltstone, Fault, Basalt

Relative dating of rock layers tells us that the deeper we dig, _______.

• the younger the rocks get
• the smellier the rocks get
• the harder the rocks get
• the older the rocks get

What is the most recent event?

• E

• B

• C

• D

What rock in the Oldest?

• Conglomerate

• Shale

• Breccia

• Sandstone

What is the last event to happen?

• Deposition of Breccia

• Igneous Intrusion

• Faulting

• Deposition of Limestone

Traces or remains of organisms that lived long ago

• Fossil
• Unconformity
• Superposition
• Column

Analyze the seashell found in the white layer.  Which statement is true of the rock layer that contains this fossil?

• It could also contain a fossil from the bottom layer.
• It is older than the layers below it.
• It is younger than the layers above it.
• It is older than the layers above it.

How do geologists use relative dating?

• Placing rocks in order from youngest to oldest
• Placing rocks in order by minerals they contain
• Classifying rocks by different textures
• Classifying rocks by different isotopes

Relative dating determines the...

• precise age of fossils
• age of fossils compared to others
• climate fossils survived in
• movement of continents