But carbon-14 dating wont work on dinosaur bones. The half-life of carbon-14 is only 5,730 years, so carbon-14 dating is only effective on samples that are less than 50,000 years old. To determine the ages of these specimens, scientists need an isotope with a very long half-life.

Can carbon-14 be used to date bones?

The Carbon 14, or radiocarbon dating method is one of the best-known methods of dating human fossils and has been around since the late 1940s.

Why is carbon 14 dating not useful for dating Fossilised remains?

Carbon-14 has a half life of 5730 years, meaning that 5730 years after an organism dies, half of its carbon-14 atoms have decayed to nitrogen atoms. Because of the short length of the carbon-14 half-life, carbon dating is only accurate for items that are thousands to tens of thousands of years old.