| Radiocarbon Year |
Website Links For Radiocarbon |
Information AboutRadiocarbon Year |
|
Willard F. Libby was awarded the Nobel Prize In Chemistry in 1960 for his work in developing radiocarbon dating. He measured the Half-life of carbon-14 to be 5568±30 years. The accepted value today is 5730±40 years. To keep radiocarbon years reported today consistent with radiocarbon years reported in the past, the Libby half-life is still used. Thus on average, 5568 radiocarbon years equal 5730 calendar years; or the average radiocarbon year is about 1.03 calendar years. Calibration curves used to correct radiocarbon dates usually correct for this as well as for changing levels of carbon-14 in the atmosphere. See Radiocarbon Dating for more information. |