Catherine Mottram on Dating Rock Deformation

Geology Bites

The geological history of most regions is shaped by a whole range of processes that occur at temperatures ranging from above 800°C to as low as 100°C. The timing of events occurring over a particular temperature range can be recorded by a mineral which crystallizes over that range. The mineral calcite is suitable for recording low-temperature processes such as fossilization, sedimentation, and fluid flow, and it is especially useful as it is virtually ubiquitous. But using uranium-lead radiometric dating in calcite is very challenging as it often contains very little uranium and the ragiogenically-produced lead isotopes can be swamped by common lead within a calcite crystal. In the podcast, Catherine Mottram explains how these challenges are being overcome and shares some of her findings based on radiometric dating of calcite. Mottram is an Associate Professor of Geology at the University of Portsmouth.