The bone was 68 million years old, and conventional wisdom about fossilization is that all soft tissue, from blood to brains, decomposes. Only hard parts, like bones and teeth, can become fossils. But for some people, the discovery raised a different question.
How do they determine the age of dinosaur bones?
There are two ways to determine the age of a dinosaur fossil. One is called relative geologic time, which involves deciding whether one dinosaur fossil is older or younger than another. The other is often called absolute geologic time, which involves estimating how many millions of years old a dinosaur fossil is.
How old are the youngest dinosaur bones?
around 65 million years ago Whats the News: Researchers have uncovered the youngest known dinosaur bone, dating from shortly before an asteroid slammed into Mexicos Yucatan peninsula around 65 million years ago. The find, published today in Biology Letters, has revived debate among paleontologists over what, exactly, killed the dinosaurs.
Are dinosaur bones really millions of years old?
Conclusions. Mesozoic dinosaur bones are millions of years old, as demonstrated by radiometric dating with radioisotopes other than 14C. Radiocarbon in Mesozoic dinosaur bones is new, not original to the bone.
What is the age of T rex bone?
67 million to 65 million years ago T. rex fossils are found in a variety of rock formations dating to the Maastrichtian age of the upper Cretaceous period, which lasted from 67 million to 65 million years ago, toward the end of the Mesozoic Era.
What is the tallest dinosaur?
Sauroposeidon The Tallest Dinosaur Brachiosaurus - the most well known of the group - was 13 metres tall. Sauroposeidon was massive and probably grew to 18.5 metres tall making it the tallest dinosaur.
What is the first animal on earth?
comb jelly A comb jelly. The evolutionary history of the comb jelly has revealed surprising clues about Earths first animal.