Relative dating is used to arrange geological events, and the rocks they leave behind, in a sequence. The method of reading the order is called stratigraphy (layers of rock are called strata) ...
This timeline provides a look at some of the historical aspects in finding out the age of the Earth. Find about more the developments in how geologists find out the ages of rocks and fossils ...
Position: Paleoclimate scientist, GNS Science. Field: Paleoecology. Dr Marcus Vandergoes is a paleoecologist at GNS Science. That means that he uses the ancient remains of plants and animals to ...
In this activity, students date fossils from one site by matching them to fossils already dated somewhere else. They use real data from Mangahouanga, made famous by paleontologist Joan Wiffen. By ...
In this activity, students use different pieces of a jigsaw to work through a process of observation, discussion, collaboration and deduction to determine what the picture shows. The activity is ...
Scientists have a variety of methods to use when they try to date a rock or a rock layer. Scientists choose the method that best suits their material – they might use relative or absolute dating ...
By comparing some features of fossilised plants with the same features of plants living today, scientists hope to be able to learn more about the effect of changing carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in ...
The Planet Four online citizen science project is designed to assist planetary scientists to identify and measure features on the surface of Mars that don’t exist on Earth. Help is needed to ...
About 14,000 earthquakes are recorded in and around Aotearoa New Zealand every year. Canterbury’s 7.1 and Kaikōura's 7.8 magnitude earthquakes and subsequent aftershocks show the constant threat ...
In this recorded professional learning session, Lyn Rogers and guest Aliki Weststrate from GNS Science explore some of the science involved in building our understandings of natural hazards ...
Why is the sky blue? Why do stars twinkle? Why did the apple fall to the ground? What happens if I hit this rock with another rock? As humans, we’re curious, and throughout history, we’ve ...
Dr Fiona Petchey from the Waikato Radiocarbon Dating Unit based at the University of Waikato, explains what an isotope is. She then focuses on the isotopes of carbon and explains how the ...
Dr James Crampton explains that all geologists need to know the age of the rocks they work with. At GNS Science, important research continues to make the New Zealand geological timescale more ...
Dr Marcus Vandergoes, a paleoecologist at GNS Science, explains how cores from Ōkārito Pākihi and other Westland peat bogs provide evidence for climate and environmental change over the last ...
Absolute dating methods give rocks an actual date or date range in numbers of years. This interactive explores four different methods used in absolute dating.
This timeline lets you see aspects of Joan's life and work, and how these fit into a wider science picture of paleontology. A full transcript is underneath.
Historical artefacts like moa bones can be dated using a technique that measures the activity of the radioisotope carbon-14 still present in the sample. By comparing this with a modern standard ...
