How Old is Petrified Wood. fascinates many people to talk about the matter of how old is petrified wood. Even the look and shape of this particular thing are fascinating in many ways. It comes from wood that looks like wood no more. Nevertheless, some people may not know all about this unique occurrence.
This unique matter is not a regular variant of wood that anyone can harvest from a tree. The name of this thing means that it is a wood that becomes a stone. So, it is a piece of wood that becomes fossil through a mineralization process for years. The wood fossilization process occurs underneath the surface. Therefore, the air cannot penetrate the wood, and it remains in its form. One thing that makes it unique is the three-dimensional shape of the fossil as its original form from a long time ago.
The so-called wood petrification process is there because the piece of wood is underneath volcanic ash or water-saturated sediment. During the occasion, water minimizes the chance of oxygen deteriorating the wood. It allows minerals to fill the interior of the wood and occupy the empty spaces right there. It is the thing that will make a petrified wood looks unique later on. Today, it becomes a one of a kind material that no one can imitate process in making it that way.
How Long Does It Take for a Piece of Wood to Become a Fossil?
So far, there are no exact numbers on how old is petrified wood. There are various discoveries of this material that indicate the different lengths of the process. An area in Brazil has a piece of this thing that could be 280 million years old. Nevertheless, a sample in the National Fossil Wood Park of India only has about 20 million years of age. Fortunately, there are some ways to find out about the age of a piece of petrified wood as accurately as possible.
In general, there are three ways to determine the value of how old is petrified wood. Scientists will use the methods and crosscheck the results to conclude the closest numbers. The first method is known as relative dating. It requires the age of the sedimentary rocks of the fossil. It requires a decent knowledge of geology in the area of discovery of the fossil.
The second method to check the age of petrified wood is the so-called biostratigraphy. It finds out the age of organisms around the fossil. They are known as index fossils that will provide some information regarding the fossil of the wood itself. The third method is radiometric dating. It requires a calculation of the radioactive elements in the fossil. The percentages will determine the age of the fossilized wood itself in the end.
Finding out about this matter is crucial to determine the ancient levels of the petrified wood. Unfortunately, some of these things are not too ancient. This kind of fossil may only be 10 million years. Regardless of everything else, it is fascinating to know more about how old is petrified wood.